Our Office Sustainability Task Force is always finding ways for us to eliminate waste and improve our operations. 

Re-imagining our paper use

In 2001, Halsall's Toronto office used roughly 1.2 million sheets of plain white paper -- about 60 trees a year just for white bond paper. When we factored in letterhead, note pads, envelopes, faxes, plotter paper, boxes, covers - we realized that we probably relied on 120 trees a year just for paper. We decided to take action.

We reduced our paper consumption by 30% in 6 months, mainly by double-siding printing and photocopying for internal documents and reports. In 2004, we reduced it by an additional 15% by introducing paperless faxes. By the end of 2004 we were consuming a mere 35 trees/year. 

In 2005, we eliminated our reliance on natural forest for our paper by switching to 100% post consumer recycled paper. We've also started making note pads from waste structural drawings. This will save approximately 35 full grown trees a year, representing a forested area equivalent to the our Toronto office footprint... every year. 

Renewable power with green electricity

As part of our research for a client on purchasing green renewable power, we found an easy and quick way to source green electricity for three of our offices through Bullfrog Power.  Bullfrog Power, Ontario’s first 100% green electricity retailer, sources power exclusively from pollution-free wind and low-impact hydro generators who meet or exceed the federal government’s Environmental Choice Program EcoLogo standard for renewable energy.  By choosing to support green power in our province, we will reduce our carbon footprint and take a leadership role in combating pollution with traditional electricity production.

Better tasting coffee for a better world

Our Sustainability Task Force decided that our coffee supply would be a great demonstration of the company's commitment to sustainability. We investigated alternative supplies that featured fairly traded coffee, believing that the increased cost would provide better tasting coffee that was produced and distributed in a way that reduced our negative impact on the environment and increased our positive impact on our community. 

Much to our surprise we found an organic, shade grown, solar dried, fair trade, fresh roasted coffee supply we could use for the same price as the coffee we had been purchasing! It is also significantly better tasting. For more information visit Merchants of Green Coffee,  and tell them we sent you. They will deliver within the Toronto area.