Here is the general truth. Law firm's by and large are just wasteful with money, with resources, in directing their energies, and much of this is simply not helpful to our environment. Worse for the law firm it costs money -- tons and tons of money. It costs money that can be used on better choices.
In this month's Texas Bar Journal Judy L. Marchman offers us the Ten Ways To Go Green -- Cost-Effectively. It is a good primer or road map to follow. Let me summarize her suggestions with some of my own thoughts.
1. ESTABLISH A PLAN. To me this is huge because you cannot get compliance if the effort is hodgepodge.
2. BE AS ENERGY EFFICIENT AS POSSIBLE. This seems obvious, does it not? Yet, I think she is saying it takes an active approach. Her point is to get an energy audit of your office, and make an effort to use energy star equipment, such as computers.
3. REDUCE, REUSE AND RECYCLE. Have separate bins for recyclables. Use discarded sheets of paper for making notes. Duplex your printing.
4. AIM FOR A PAPERLESS OFFICE. Really, everybody is talking about this, but for a lot of lawyers and employees and staff paper and printing is a very hard and bad habit to break. Stop typing a letter, attaching it to an email and then printing it off and mailing the original. I DO NOT CARE ABOUT PROTOCOL! That is an excuse. Nobody cares but you. It is time consuming, it is wasteful and even in small law firm it costs thousands of dollars a year in paper, envelopes, postage and the staff time to do it. Just put it in an email an send it. Also, use e-filing everywhere you can.
5. BAN THE WATER BOTTLES. Bravo! Try this one -- tap water and glasses. If you just have to get that image of filtered water in your head, then buy a Brita filter or something. First, it has been reported that the residue from the chemicals with which they make the plastic bottles is in the water and is bad for you. Second, most studies show that bottle water is dead water or it actually has more bad bacteria than tap. To me it is just not satisfying.
6. NO MORE STYROFOAM. Bravo again! Can nobody rinse out a glass or mug any more? Is that too hard? Embarrass your staff and colleagues in regard to this if you have to. Get rid of trash by not creating it or allowing it in your office any longer.
7. TURN OFF THE LIGHTS. Also, make sure your landlord, if that is not you, is using energy-efficient and longer-lasting compact fluorescent lights. Besides, if enough light is coming into the room everybody will do better without the glare of overhead lights. Only use lights when you have to.
8. MAKE YOUR MACHINES MULTITASK. Do not buy as many printers. Make more people in your office use a single printer. Do not get one for every desk. That will enforce the paperless revolution. Where you can, by all-in-one machines and buy fewer of them. Make sure they are energy efficient. With less use you will be able to maintain them longer.
9. TELECOMMUTE. I do not particularly like this word. It is so last century. But, you get the point. Work from home. Heck, move your office home if you can. It cuts down on the need for office space, which is a big expense. It cuts down on the commute, which is a big expense. It cuts down on the need for staff, which is a big expense. For me this should be task one.
10. EDUCATE YOURSELF. Here is the thing that I have found. Once you get into the mode of greening your office and your life, you get excited about it and want to learn more. You try to figure out how you can cut waste even more. There are a lot of resources out there, and a lot on the web.
Here is the thing. Contrary to popular argument by some, my experience is that lawyers are some of the most responsible people on the face of the earth. Why? Because many go to law school because they care about things and issues, and people. Attorneys are committed to fighting for the things that are important in this World. Greening up the workplace is important. It is worth the fight. It saves money. So get started in developing into a lean, green law machine that your office is designed to be.
Great post, excellent suggestions. I especially appreciate #10. Agreed, once on the green path, it really starts getting addictive.
Posted by: Kelly Frame | April 03, 2009 at 07:21 PM