GSA ACTING ADMINISTRATOR ISSUES STATEMENT ON EXECUTIVE ORDER ON GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

FROM:  U.S. GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
GSA Chief Issues the Statement on New Executive Order on Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Other Sustainability Issues

WASHINGTON – Today, GSA Acting Administrator Denise Turner Roth issued the following statement on a new Executive Order that will cut the federal government’s greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent over the next decade from 2008 levels -- saving taxpayers up to $18 billion in avoided energy costs -- and increase the share of electricity the federal government consumes from renewable sources to 30 percent. In addition to setting new sustainability goals for buildings and renewable targets, the new Executive Order sets new supply chain targets that will require agencies to include greenhouse gas emissions standards in contracts for at least five new procurements annually. For more information about the new Executive Order, click here.

“GSA is proud to be a federal leader in the Administration’s effort to address climate change, and will work hard to remain a leader in this effort by not just meeting the new 2025 targets, but going beyond them. We have already exceeded some of the targets set by the previous Executive Order and we are confident we can do it again.

“Since buildings account for 98 percent of GSA’s operational greenhouse gas emissions, a large part of achieving this goal will require GSA to increase its use of Energy Savings Performance Contracts and other retrofitting strategies to make federal buildings more energy efficient. As one of the first agencies to meet the President’s Performance Contracting Challenge, GSA has used ESPCs to cut energy use in federal buildings by nearly 40 percent and achieve more than $10 million in annual savings.

“Achieving this goal will also require GSA to continue finding innovative ways to increase the federal government’s use of renewable energy. At Fort Huachuca, GSA recently partnered with the Department of Defense to install the Army's largest solar energy installation to date, and will triple that achievement on bases in Georgia soon to be constructed.  At Fort Carson our daylight harvesting research is helping the base move toward Net Zero Energy. Continuing efforts like this to get Army bases and other federal facilities off the grid will go a long way in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“GSA’s renewed commitment to addressing climate change and other sustainability issues would not be complete without efforts to green the federal supply chain. That’s why last year we included language in the Domestic Delivery Service (DDS3) and One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS) acquisition vehicles that encourages federal contractors to disclose their carbon footprint, and why we will soon begin a new voluntary pilot with CDP and more than 100 federal contractors to expand this sort of disclosure. Sustainable building standards have helped GSA save $250 million in energy and water costs since 2008, and sustainable purchasing will similarly result in additional savings for the American people in the future.

“As GSA has already demonstrated, addressing climate change is good for the environment and American taxpayers. We look forward to furthering our sustainability efforts through 2025 and beyond.”