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Getting Started

There are a huge number of practical steps you can adopt that are both environmentally responsible and economical, many of which are inexpensive. There are also many rebates and incentive programs available. Connecting with the BEA and its partner agencies can help you understand your opportunities and implement cost saving solutions.

Review these steps to plan your environmental initiative effectively

1. Establish Leadership
   • Small Business: Identify a single point person (with or without the oversight of management) to manage the initiative.
   • Large Business: Create a Task force of 3 to 8 people. A cross section of employees, tenants/property managers, management and facility staff to contribute their time and expertise.
2. Use the toolkit and take advantage of free audits to identify cost-saving opportunities for your business.

3. Benchmark your performance: Gather and analyze information relevant to the design and implementation of an initiative, such as your energy load profile and billing history, water and sewage bill and waste hauling bill.

4. Coordinate with your stakeholders to define success and set measurable goals for the program.

   Stakeholders

   • Corporate / Management: Cost savings, payback period, new revenue streams, market share, employee morale, and ease of implementation.
   • Customers: Corporate Social Responsibility commitments, quality product, environmental responsibility, and environmental initiatives.
   • Employees: Healthy, low impact workplace, and ability to bring values to work.
   • Property Managers: Fair sharing of costs and savings for capital improvements. This can often be one of the most difficult obstacles to the implementation of significant capital improvements, especially those with a payback period that extends beyond the lease time. A lease addendum is an innovative solution that can form the basis of an agreement.

   Defining Success

   • Waste: Purchasing and procurement policy, scope and scale of waste diverted (reduced, reused, recycled), associated hauling fee savings, recycling revenue and payback period for implementation.
   • Water: Volume of water conserved (compared with last year), volume of water recycled, money saved on water use and sewage discharge, and payback period for implementation.
   • Energy: Energy conserved (vs last year), money saved, pounds of CO2 avoided, and payback period for implementation.
   • Employee Satisfaction: Rate of turnover, recruitment, number of sick days taken, and results of employee survey.
   • Public Relations and Marketing Impact: What initiatives have similar businesses completed that have earned them a competitive edge with costs and customers? What reaction do you anticipate from peers, the public, your existing customers and potential customers?
5. Profile your business and prioritize no-cost to low-cost recommendations (especially for energy efficiency, before you consider renewable energy). Consult with partner agencies to prioritize audit recommendations and contract with vendors.
   • Qualitative Criteria: Could we achieve some early successes to raise enthusiasm about the program? Are there opportunities to address health and safety issues? Are there community concerns that might be addressed? Are there hazardous chemicals that could be eliminated? Would employee or tenant morale/satisfaction be in creased?
   • Economic Feasibility: Estimated cost? Estimated rebates and incentives available? Payback period?
   • Technical Feasibility: Do you need support from the property manager? Feasible timeline for implementation and installation? Understand the application process for incentive.

6. Use the toolkit to identify financing systems, rebates and incentives that are now available to mitigate the cost to your business and the ability for you to quantify the real price of using unnecessary resources. Use the ROI examples, which PG&E, Sonoma County Water Agency and Sonoma County Waste Management Agency can help you customize.

7. Ongoing Administration
   • Monitor the progress of the program. Track your progress publicly to create a habit of saving and accountability.
   • Promote the program to employees and tenants and inform them about how they can participate.
   • Periodically report to management, tenants, and employees about the status of the program.

8. Connect with the BEA! Connect with other businesses, share best practices, attend industry-specific workshops, get support for their implementation, help expand the BEA toolkit with your company’s case studies, and receive rebate and incentive program updates in our quarterly newsletter.

9. Get Recognized: The Annual Best Practice Awards and Business Leaders’ Breakfast recognizes businesses that have taken exemplary steps in resource conservation and efficiency. The toolkit includes many examples of best practice winners as case studies for you to read. Contact us if you would like to be considered.

Sonoma Green Business Program

A certification program developed in association with the Bay Area Green Business Program, that recognizes businesses for going beyond environmental compliance. The program provides free waste disposal, water and energy audits for businesses and certifies businesses for meeting industry-specific program requirements. The Bay Area Program has certified over 1,800 businesses. Put up your Sonoma Green Business Program sticker in your business, be spotlighted on the website, and receive certification recognition at the Board of Supervisors meeting.