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Sustainability

Section
Managing My GSA Contract
Topic
Contract Compliance

In accordance with FAR Section 23.1, federal agencies are required to procure sustainable products and services to the maximum extent practicable. Sustainable products and services are products and services that are subject to and meet applicable statutory purchasing programs (see FAR 23.107) and required EPA purchasing programs (see FAR 23.108).  In accordance with FAR 23.103(c), this includes products under contract actions for services or construction if the products are:

  • Delivered to the Government; 
  • Furnished by the contractor for use by the Government; 
  • Incorporated into the construction of a public building or public work; or 
  • Acquired by the contractor for use in performing services under a Government contract where the cost of the products is a direct cost to a Government contract.

MAS contracts include, among others, the following environmental clauses:

  • FAR 52.223-23, Sustainable Products and Services, requires contractors to ensure the sustainable products and services identified in the contract are delivered or furnished to the government. The clause flows down to the order level and orders will identify sustainable products and services in the statement of work or elsewhere in the contract, including the purchasing program and type of product or service that are applicable. MAS Contractors are encouraged to use GSA’s Green Procurement Compilation to learn about the purchasing programs that apply to a specific product or service.
  • GSAR 552.238-78, Identification of Products that Have Environmental Attributes, requires contractors to highlight environmental products under schedule contracts in various communications media, including GSA Advantage!, and printed catalogs and price lists. In order to highlight product environmental attributes on GSA Advantage!, contractors must select the applicable attributes in the Schedules Input Program (SIP), Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), or FAS Catalog Platform (FCP). ENERGY STAR and WaterSense designations are not included in SIP because GSA automatically assigns those designations to GSA Advantage!.
  • GSAR 552.238-119 Single-use Plastic (SUP) Free Packaging Availability, encourages contractors to adopt SUP-free packaging to the maximum extent practicable. Contractors can identify qualifying products with the SUP-free packaging icon on GSA Advantage!, making it easy for agency buyers to select products that help meet their plastic waste reduction goals. To have your products highlighted with the icon, select the SUP-free packaging option for qualifying products in SIP, EDI, or FCP. For additional information, refer to the GSA Interact notice on SUP (Help agencies meet plastic waste reduction).