GreenCheck

In This Section

• How It Works
• History
• Training
• The Future
• Download the GreenCheck Checklist and Supporting Documents

EPA created GreenCheck as a framework for “greening” its real estate projects and streamlining and tracking its facilities’ compliance with federal requirements, including the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005), Executive Order 13423 (E.O. 13423), the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA), and the Guiding Principles for implementing the Federal Leadership in High Performance and Sustainable Buildings Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

Through GreenCheck, EPA has established a formal process to review and ensure each major project’s compliance with energy and environmental goals and regulations—in particular those dealing with energy and water efficiency and conservation, materials, wastes, indoor environmental quality, and other sustainability provisions.

GreenCheck encourages project kick-off meetings to bring together all project stakeholders—including the real estate lead, EPA architects and engineers, the architectural and engineering firm, the client, and EPA "area of practice" specialists representing water, energy, and materials—to identify project opportunities, resolve technical questions, and set up technical support for the project.

How It Works

GreenCheck consolidates various requirements into a user-friendly checklist to be evaluated at the inception of a project. The process is designed to provide a “one-stop shop” for meeting federal environmental requirements, incorporating EPA best practices, and “walking the talk” for sustainability goals at the facility level, while also fostering an integrated team approach by bringing in all the stakeholders.

Architects and engineers from EPA’s Architecture, Engineering, and Assessment Management Branch (AEAMB), along with representatives from the Agency’s Sustainable Facilities Practices Branch (SFPB), complete a GreenCheck form for each qualifying project. It is the responsibility of the project lead to ensure that the requirements identified in the GreenCheck form are incorporated in the planning, design, and construction phases of the project.

The SFPB and AEAMB branch chiefs assign project team leads and review the information recorded for each project for quality assurance and completeness. The GreenCheck coordinator oversees the process using the GreenCheck project spreadsheet to track the progress of all the projects. On major projects, a local facility manager is also involved in the GreenCheck process.

History

EPA initiated the GreenCheck process in FY 2007, but the Agency significantly modified the checklist in FY 2008 to standardize and improve the process. During FY 2008, every EPA construction project and large lease was evaluated to see if it qualified under the GreenCheck criteria previously described. Of the 45 projects evaluated, 26 projects qualified and received a full GreenCheck review.

Training

EPA developed a training program for the GreenCheck process and trained project managers at EPA Headquarters in January 2009. The Agency is planning to make individual visits with Headquarters facility personnel to answer questions and to obtain feedback on the form.

The Future

GreenCheck remains a living document that is continually being revised based on feedback from project managers and serves as a reminder to all EPA architecture, engineering, and real estate professionals to keep sustainability at the top of mind at the facility level.

Download the GreenCheck Checklist and Supporting Documents

If you are an EPA employee and have a project that qualifies for GreenCheck, or if you would like to review the document, you may download the GreenCheck Checklist.

The GreenCheck Checklist (May 5, 2009, version) (Microsoft Word, 363K)

In addition, the following documents are available to help explain and guide the GreenCheck process:

GreenCheck Process Overview (PDF) (2 pp, 63K, About PDF)
Describes the GreenCheck program and provides a brief overview of when the process should be initiated.

GreenCheck Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) (PDF) (2 pp, 99K, About PDF)
Answers frequently asked questions about GreenCheck. This document is targeted at project leads.

Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines (CPG) Summary (PDF) (29 pp, 456K, About PDF)
EPA developed the CPG program to promote the use of materials recovered from solid waste. This document is a user-friendly compilation of CPG designated products pertaining to building and construction.