Burlington’s Jessica Frank, Executive Secretary to CFO, wins Governor Award for Environmental Excellence

Ms. Frank Leads City in Environmentally Preferred Purchasing Policy ImplementationMakes “Green Purchasing” Cost Effective; Reduces Truck Traffic with Consolidated Purchasing

Burlington, VT – April 12, 2010.  Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss is pleased to announce that Jessica Frank, Executive Secretary to Burlington’s Chief Financial Officer will receive this year’s Governor Award for Environmental Excellence for her work to implement the City’s Environmentally Preferred Purchasing (EPP) Policy.  Ms. Frank will receive the award on May 3 at an award ceremony at the House Chamber of the State House.  Governor Douglas and Jonathon Wood, Secretary, Agency of Natural Resources, will present the award.  Ms. Frank will attend the ceremony with several city colleagues also working on EPP implementation and a representative from Mason Brothers, the City’s paper and office supplier who has worked collaboratively with the city to make “green” purchasing cost effective while centralizing and coordinating deliveries, minimizing truck traffic and pollution.

In June 2009, Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss enacted an Environmentally Preferred Purchasing (EPP) policy.  Drafted over many months by the Mayor’s Burlington Sustainability Action Team (or “green team”), this policy reflects the city’s commitment to human and environmental health, and wise and effective use of city funds for all its operations.  At the suggestion of several purchasers and “green team” members, Ms. Frank was identified as a possible staff person to play this key role. In the first months after the EPP went into affect, Jessica single-handedly organized and guided City Hall’s departments to collectively purchase a myriad of green office products.  She also successfully negotiated cost effective pricing, saving the City money on Forestry Certified Paper and other products.  By late summer 2009, Ms. Frank devised a system with the vendor, by which departments could order supplies every two weeks, ultimately reducing truck deliveries to City Hall by 75%.   Then, in late 2009 Jessica drafted and distributed a RFP to secure a long-term vendor contract.  Mason Brothers ultimately won the contract launching a relationship to help ensure that the city can buy the most environmentally benign products at the most competitive prices for years to come.   Ms. Frank is also working with Mason Brothers to pilot a “returnable tote” project, so that supplies are no longer delivered in cardboard boxes with bubble wrap, but in plastic totes that can be returned and reused for other deliveries.

Anyone with comments or questions can contact Joe Reinert, Assistant to the Mayor at jreinert@ci.burlington.vt.us .   A copy of the EPP Policy can be found at: http://burlingtonclimateaction.com/announcements/burlington-making-headways-with-the-implementation-of-its-environmental-purchasing-policy-epp/attachment/epp-policy-adopted/