"ÖkoKauf Wien" - programme for sustainable public procurement

The City of Vienna's programme for sustainable public procurement, ÖkoKauf Wien, has been commended by the EU commission as one of the most effective projects to promote resource efficiency. Thanks to its sustainable procurement system, the City of Vienna has managed to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 30,000 tons per year.

For more than a decade, the City of Vienna has followed ecological criteria when buying goods and services - from washing powder to office supplies, from food for kindergartens and hospitals to construction materials.

With its ÖkoKauf project, the City of Vienna has developed an international role model in terms of sustainable public procurement. Now "ÖkoKauf Wien" is among three outstanding sustainable procurement initiatives selected by the EU commission.

Protecting the environment across national borders

Both of Vienna's major initiatives to promote ecological management - "Ökokauf Wien" and the Vienna EcoBusinessPlan - have made international networking a key priority. After all, cooperation across national borders is essential when it comes to protecting our environment.

The sustainability coordination office in the City of Vienna's Environmental Protection Department (MA 22) has over ten years of experience with programmes that promote sustainability, and also communicates the know-how to partners abroad. The City of Vienna has also been lauded for its exemplary role by the Court of Auditors in its recent report on sustainable development at federal and provincial level in Austria.

Key figures for sustainability

Thanks to "ÖkoKauf Wien", the Vienna City Administration has applied ecological criteria to procurement procedures for more than ten years now, thus cutting annual carbon dioxide emissions by about 30,000 tons and saving approximately EUR 17 million per year. For instance, installing water saver fittings in public schools, kindergartens and office buildings has helped reduce costs by as much as EUR 1.5 million.

The Vienna EcoBusinessPlan was launched to support eco-friendly and sustainable initiatives by private enterprises and the business community in Vienna. More than 740 local businesses have participated in the programme since 1998. As a result, they have managed to save about EUR 55.7 million in operating costs altogether, with similar reductions in resource consumption (i.e. energy, raw materials and water) and waste output.