Global warming. Rising energy costs. Oil dependency. Environmental degradation. These are just a few of the reasons more and more law offices are using new energy-efficient technology to “go green.” From retrofitting buildings and offices to using fewer resources, there are numerous ways that firms of all sizes can create sustainable offices.
Environmentally minded building technologies include: radiant-heat floors, which heat rooms more efficiently than forced-air heating systems; gray-water recyclers, which recycle treated and disinfected wastewater from bathroom sinks for nonpotable uses, such as toilet flushing, to ease pressure on drinking-water resources;1 and darkening windows, which block heat from entering a room when the tint of the window is adjusted.
Additional technologies have been employed at the Seattle Justice Center, which houses the Seattle Municipal Court and police headquarters. The Center harvests rainwater and stores it for irrigation, uses fluorescent lights throughout the project and has occupancy sensors in conference rooms that automatically turn off the lights when people leave.
The Vance Building in downtown Seattle, which houses the Washington Environmental Council (WEC) and other environmental groups (including Climate Solutions, Earth Share of Washington, Sightline Institute and Washington Conservation Voters), also has a number of green attributes. Built in 1929, the Vance Building was recently refurbished using sustainable materials and energy-efficient fixtures.
According to WEC Legal Director Michael Mayer, natural ventilation mechanisms, such as overhead fans and big windows with shades, were favored over a mechanical cooling system. The building, which earned LEED Silver certification in 2007, also features motion sensors for lights and faucets and an updated steam system for heating.
The Lane Powell firm has a Sustainability Team, which keeps its offices on track in such areas as purchasing supplies and equipment from vendors that employ sustainable business practices, including Energy Star electronics.2
And on a smaller scale, new — and not-so-new — technology is allowing many of us to go paperless or at least reduce the amount of paper we use. I recently traded my desktop for a laptop, which allows me to take my office with me to meetings and appointments and avoid printing out and hauling reams of paper. And my HP Officejet all-in-one has been chugging along for a good four years now, printing, copying, faxing, and scanning, and eliminating the need for four different energy-consuming machines. I also use refillable ink cartridges so as to send fewer empty cartridges to landfills (and to save money as well).
Fellow solo attorney John Grant, who is in the process of opening his own paperless office, is taking this idea a step farther. He swears by his Fujitsu ScanSnap scanner, which he uses to handle and file incoming documents and mail. The device features two-sided scanning per sheet (in seconds) and bundled software, including Acrobat Pro.
In the same spirit of saving trees, legal investigator Susan Stafford uses 10.5-point type instead of 12-point to fit more words on the page, even though it means donning her reading glasses more often. She also minimizes the emails and documents she prints by using Google Desktop, with which she can search not only the Web, but also search her own desktop for documents and emails, and launch applications.3
And staff members at Lane Powell print and copy on double-sided paper and many of the firm’s intra-office documents have been converted to electronic-only versions.4
Here are a few other green strategies5 that can be used by law offices:
- Use “print preview” before printing out documents to reduce multiple drafts.
- Use a spell-check function before printing out documents.
- Increase alternatives to paper communication (electronic-client and in-house newsletters and memos).
- Use screensavers on computers.
- Consider videoconferencing in place of out-of-town meetings.
- Install automatic lighting controls in irregularly used spaces.
- Install and set programmable thermostats.
- Make energy efficiency a decision factor when purchasing equipment.
- Participate in the EPA “Green Lights” program6 to reduce lighting costs.
- Use electronic ballasts and energy-efficient fluorescents in your lighting
But my favorite energy-saving idea is not high-tech at all. Solo Michelle Farris keeps her puppy under her desk to warm her feet and compost her lunch scraps.
By employing these strategies, businesses can not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions, decrease dependency on fossil fuels and use fewer resources, but also save costs by lowering their energy bills, buying less paper and taking advantage of tax savings. For example, firms may be eligible for tax credits and deductions when they purchase Energy Star and Consortium for Energy Efficiency (CEE) rated appliances and equipment, install compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) and light emitting diode (LED) lightbulbs, and improve the energy efficiency of commercial buildings.
Saving the planet. Saving money. Technology can help us go green and save some green, too.
Maura Kelley Deering is a solo practitioner in Seattle focusing on environmental law, land use and real estate law. She can be reached at 206-679-8486 or through her website, www.raining.us/attorney.htm.
1 From the Natural Resources Defense Council’s website, http://www.nrdc.org/enterprise/greeningadvisor/cri-wastewater.asp
2 Go to www.energystar.gov for more information.
3 Go to desktop.google.com for details.
4 From Lane Powell’s website, http://www.lanepowell.com/firm/sustainability.asp.
5 From the American Bar Association’s website, http://www.abanet.org/publicserv/environmental/sustainable_law_office.shtml.
6 U.S. EPA voluntary program providing technical information, financing options, lighting software and other services to encourage use of energy-efficient lighting: http://www.dazor.com/green-lights.html.
Go Back