More than 10 years ago, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) mandated that federal offices and employees follow specific guidelines on materials and supplies purchasing, disposal and recycling. Executive Orders 12780/12873 and currently, 13101, were also directed toward establishing and maintaining recycling and recovery programs.

GSA is implementing changes to improve services and reduce costs in numerous areas. This ongoing transformation empowers GSA to meet new challenges with new solutions. GSA's Recycling programs are now running effectively in more than 1,100 government-owned and leased buildings serving over 650,000 clients.

GSA will help other federal agencies set-up recycling programs in buildings they operate addressing not only the traditional office waste stream, but also include other related programs that direct employees on the proper disposal of newspaper, glass, beverage containers, phone books, carpet squares and even grass clippings.

In addition, GSA has partnered with its Federal Supply Service (FSS) to promote the acquisition of "environmentally oriented" products and services for the federal community. FSS publishes an Environmental Products Guide that markets over 5,000 environmentally friendly products in the Federal Supply System that are available for purchase by federal agencies worldwide.