1. Electronics, the Environment, and Public Buildings Raheem M. Cash Director, Environment Program Public Buildings Service General Services Administration The International Symposium on Electronics and the Environment 17 May 2005 New Orleans, LA U.S. General Services Administration Public Buildings Service (PBS)

2. Agenda • What is the Public Buildings Service (PBS)? • Electronics and PBS • Current Initiatives • Future Initiatives

3. The Public Buildings Service (PBS) • Largest and most diversified real estate organization in the U.S. • Design, construct, operate and maintain offices, courthouses, labs, and border stations • Own 1700 buildings; lease 6,600 buildings • 1.1 million Federal workers (tenants) • 100 Federal agencies (customers) • 2,000 communities • $700M Net Income

4. PBS and Electronics • Region 5 FEC Pilot Study • 3 Federal office buildings • 32,000 lbs recycled e-scrap • 130 monitors • 240 keyboards/mice • 50 CPUs • 20 printers • 5 copiers • Implications for all of PBS?

5. PBS and Electronics • Approximately 10,000 computers discarded weekly by the federal government • In PBS facilities, these must be managed alongside other solid waste and recyclables • Some tenants “dump” electronics into PBS hands • Some tenants store old electronics in conference rooms and other rentable space • Agencies pay same rent regardless of use of space • PBS must also manage the electronics purchased and used by its 6000 employees

6. Challenges • How to handle flow of waste electronics from tenants • How to ensure most effective use of customer workspace • How to manage PBS electronic waste in coordination with our customers

7. Opportunities • Potential to provide new service to our customers • Potential to play major role in helping agencies meet the Federal Electronics Challenge

8. PBS Initiatives • Signed FEC MOU • Created SEAM Team (Sustainable Electronics Asset Management) • Includes headquarters and six regions: • Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, San Francisco, and Washington, DC • Five regions have formed teams with regional Federal Supply Service representatives, building managers, and IT managers

9. PBS Initiatives Purpose of SEAM Team • Build relationships with Federal Supply Service, IT representatives, etc • Serve as a forum for members to share knowledge and experiences • Ensure efficient use of resources

10. Future Initiatives • Conduct market analysis • Identify electronics recyclers • Determine capabilities, costs, etc • Assess recycling practices • Identify best auditing practices   • Estimate current inventory of electronic assets for all PBS owned buildings • Estimate future government electronic waste flows • Survey customer procurement/disposal practices • Determine future storage needs • Conduct logistical analysis to determine best collection methods • Urban, metro areas vs. rural, isolated areas

11. Questions?