BBBTV12 Serving Anderson, Roane, and Morgan Counties
Sites recognized for sustainable purchasing
Oak Ridge, Tenn.— Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas, turned green into gold with GreenBuy Gold Awards from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for sustainable purchasing in Fiscal Year 2023. The awards recognize excellence in “green purchasing” that extends beyond minimum compliance.
Y-12 has been honored with GreenBuy awards for five years. This year, the site was recognized for purchasing nine priority products in five categories. The site was also honored with a GreenBuy Prime Award for achieving the gold level for three consecutive years.
Sites have history of award-winning efforts
Shab Fardanesh, senior advisor and Sustainable Acquisition Program coordinator for the DOE Office of Sustainable Environmental Stewardship, said, “This is the third time Y-12 has been recognized for achieving the gold level and demonstrating excellence in sustainable acquisition, which is also commended with the GreenBuy Prime Award for demonstrating exceptional achievements in sustainable acquisition.”
This was the fourth year Pantex has been honored with GreenBuy awards for sustainable purchasing and the first time the plant has achieved the gold level. Pantex purchased 10 priority products in 5 categories to achieve this honor.
Achieving the mission while reducing environmental impact
“Both sites achieved these awards by demonstrating excellence in sustainable acquisition for recycling electronics and purchasing paper products, electronic equipment, Y‑12’s LED emergency lighting on the two new fire trucks, etc., as priority products,” said Jan Jackson, Consolidated Nuclear Security (CNS) Sustainability and Stewardship manager.
Brad Russell, CNS Sustainable Acquisition program manager, also pointed out an employee-education achievement that the awards highlighted. “These awards recognize that the CNS Sustainable Acquisition Program trained 297 employees at Y-12 and Pantex involved in specifying and procuring materials, products, and services during Fiscal Year 2023,” he said.
Advantages of going green
Fardanseh noted, “Participation in this program leverages the federal government’s purchasing dollars to achieve mission goals while improving the marketplace for greener products and reducing the environmental impact of the department’s operations.”
“Reducing the environmental impact of the sites’ mission activities is always a goal,” said Russell. “Having those efforts validated by DOE helps us communicate the important impact of green purchasing.”
Learn more about the GreenBuy Award Program (https://www.energy.gov/ehss/greenbuy-awards) and its recognition of DOE sites for their excellence in “green purchasing.”
