2007
 Buy-Recycled  Series
       PARK &  RECREATION
                 PRODUCTS
COMPREHENSIVE
 PROCUREMENT
   GUIDELINES
 PARK & RECREATION
        Want to go the extra
        mile for your commu-
        nity? Buying recycled-
content playground equipment
and other recreational products
is cost-effective, easy to do, and
a good way to keep our outdoors
green. You also can provide
	 long-lasting protection
      for sand dunes at your
      community's beaches us-
      ing plastic fencing made
      from recovered plastics.

 Buying recycled products...

 ...conserves natural resources

 ...saves energy

 ...reduces solid waste

 ...reduces air and water pollutants

 ...reduces greenhouse gases

 ...creates new jobs
©EPA
EPA530-F-07-040
www.epa.gov/osw
October 2007
      To make it easier to
      buy recycled, the U.S.
      Environmental Protec-
      tion Agency (EPA) pe-
      riodically updates the
      Comprehensive Procure-
      ment Guidelines (CPG).
      Through the CPG, EPA
      designates items that
      must contain recycled
      materials when pur-
      chased with appropriated
      federal funds by federal,
      state, and local agen-
      cies, or by government
      contractors. Several park
      and recreation products
      are among these items.
      EPA's research shows
      that the items designated
      in the CPG are of high
      quality, widely avail-
able, and cost-competitive with
virgin products. EPA also issues
nonregulatory companion guid-
ance—the Recovered Materials
Advisory Notice (RMAN)—that
recommends levels of recycled
content for these items.

Why Buy Recycled?
Recycling is more than just
dropping off your cans, bottles,
and newspapers at the curb or
at a local collection facility.
Diverting recyclables from the
waste stream is only the first
of three steps in the recycling
process. The second step oc-
curs when companies use these
recyclables to manufacture new
products. The third step comes
when you purchase products
made from recovered materials.

Buying recycled products re-
sults in many environmental
benefits. It supports local re-
cycling programs by creating
markets for the collected mate-
rials that are processed and used
to manufacture new products.
This creates jobs and helps
strengthen the economy; con-
serves natural resources; saves
energy; and reduces solid waste,
air and water pollutants, and
greenhouse gases that contrib-
ute to global warming.

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What Is  CPG?
      The Resource Conservation and Re-
      covery Act (RCRA) requires procur-
      ing agencies to buy recycled-content
products designated by EPA in the CPG.
Issued in May 1995, the first CPG designat-
ed 19 new products, including playground
surfaces and running tracks, and incorporat-
ed five previously designated items in eight
product categories.  The first CPG update
(CPG II) was published in November 1997
and designated an additional 12 products,
including plastic fencing. A second CPG
update (CPG III) was published in January
2000 and designated an additional 18 prod-
ucts, including park benches, picnic tables,
and playground equipment. The third CPG
update (CPG IV) was published in April
2004, designating seven new products. The
fourth CPG update (CPG V), published in
September 2007, designated one new item
and revised another designation. Neither
of the last two updates designated any new
park and recreation products. For more
information, visit .

Procuring  agencies include all federal agen-
cies, and any state or local government
agencies or government contractors that
use appropriated federal funds to purchase
the designated items. If your agency spends
more than $10,000 per year on a product
designated in  the CPG, you are required to
purchase it with the highest recycled-con-
tent level practicable. The CPG also ap-
plies to lease contracts covering designated
items. Executive Order (E.O.) 13423 and the
Federal Acquisition Regulation also call for
an increase in the federal government's use
of recycled-content and environmentally
preferable products.

Once any new items are designated in a
published CPG update, an agency has 1
year to develop an affirmative procure-
ment program (or revise  an existing one) to
include these new items. In previous years,
agencies have had to revise their affirma-
tive procurement programs to incorporate
buy-recycled requirements for items such
as playground surfaces, running tracks,
plastic fencing, park benches, picnic
tables, and playground equipment. This ef-
fort might have involved reviewing specifi-
cations for those products and eliminating
provisions that pose barriers to procuring
them with recycled content (such as aes-
thetic requirements unrelated to product
performance). Since CPG V designates no
new park and recreation products, agencies
are  not required to revise this portion of
their affirmative procurement program.

The CPG acknowledges that specific cir-
cumstances might arise that preclude the
purchase of products made with recovered
materials. Your agency may purchase des-
ignated items that do not contain recov-
ered materials if it determines that: 1) the
price of a given designated item made with
recovered materials is unreasonably high;
2) there is inadequate competition (not
enough sources of supply); 3) unusual and
unreasonable delays would result from ob-
taining the item,-  or 4) the recycled-content
item does not meet an  agency's reasonable
performance specifications.

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                              PARK & RECREATION PRODUCTS
                                      PAGE 2

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How Do I  Purchase Recycled-
Content Park & Recreation  Products?
     EPA issues purchasing guidance in
     RMANs, which are designed to make
     it as easy as possible to buy the des-
ignated items. The RMANs recommend
recycled-content levels to look for when
purchasing park and recreation products/
as shown in the table below. Following the
RMANs' recommended levels will help
ensure your affirmative procurement pro-
gram and standards meet the buy-recycled
requirements. The RMANs also provide
other purchasing guidance. Please refer to
 for more
information on individual products.
               Rather than specifying just one level of
               recycled content, the RMANs recommend
               ranges that reflect actual market condi-
               tions. The recommendations are based on
               market research identifying recycled-con-
               tent products that are commercially avail-
               able, are competitively priced, and meet
               buyers' quality standards.

               Access EPA's online recycled-content prod-
               ucts database by going to  and selecting "Supplier Database." See
               the last section of this resource guide for
               other helpful resources.
     EPA's Recommended Content Levels for Park Si Recreation Products
    PARK & RECREATION
        PRODUCT1
 Park Benches and Picnic
 Tables
 Plastic Fencing for Specified
 Uses5

 Playground Equipment
     MATERIAL
Plastic3

Plastic Composites

Aluminum

Concrete

Steel4


Plastic
POST-CONSUMER
  RECOVERED
   90-100%

   50-100%

    25%
     16%
     67%

   60-100%
Plastic3
Plastic Composites
Steel4
90-100%
50-75%
16%
67%
                                       RECOVERED
                                        CONTENT2
 100%

 100%



 15-40%

 25-30%
 100%

90-100%


 100%

95-100%

 25-30%
 100%
                            PARK & RECREATION PRODUCTS
                                    PAGE 3

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      PARK & RECREATION
           PRODUCT1
 Playground Surfaces

 Running Tracks
                                  MATERIAL
                            Plastic or Rubber

                            Plastic or Rubber
     POST-CONSUMER
       RECOVERED
        CONTENT2
         90-100%

         90-100%
   TOTAL
RECOVERED
 CONTENT2
  EPAs recommendations do not preclude a procuring agency from purchasing these items manufactured from another material. They simply require that a
  procuring agency purchase these items made with recovered materials when these items meet applicable specifications and performance requirements. Fed-
  eral agency installations of these products must comply with applicable state or local construction codes, as well as standards set by the Consumer Product
  Safety Commission and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

  The recommended recovered materials content levels are based on the dry weight of the raw materials, exclusive of any additives such as adhesives, binders,
  or coloring agents.

  "Plastic" includes both single and mixed plastic resins. Park benches and picnic tables made with recovered plastic also may contain other recovered materi-
  als, such as sawdust, wood, or fiberglass. The percentage of these materials contained in the product also would count toward the recovered materials content
  level of the item.

  The recommended recovered materials content level for steel in this table reflects the fact that the designated items can be made from steel manufactured
  from either a Basic Oxygen Furnace (EOF) or an Electric Arc Furnace (EAF). Steel from the EOF process contains 25-30 percent total recovered materials, of
  which 16 percent is post-consumer steel. Steel from the EAF process contains a total of 100 percent recovered steel, of which 67 percent is post-consumer.

  Designation includes fencing containing recovered plastic for use in controlling snow or sand drifting and as a warning/safety barrier in construction or other
  applications.
How  Can  I  Get  More  Information?
T
his resource guide and the following resourc-
es on buying recycled-content products can
be accessed on the Internet.
             Information Available
             From EPA
    The CPG: . This site de-
    scribes EPA's effort to facilitate the procurement
    of products containing recovered materials,
    including information on CPG and RMANs, and
    an online database of manufacturers and suppli-
    ers of designated items.

    EPA CPG Program: . EPA's EPP program encour-
ages and assists federal agencies in purchasing
environmentally preferable products and ser-
vices. The site explains EPA's proposed guiding
principles for including environmental perfor-
mance in purchasing decision-making, and posts
case studies of successful pilot projects in both
the public and private sectors.

Jobs Through Recycling: .
EPA's Jobs Through Recycling program stimulates
economic growth and recycling market develop-
ment by assisting businesses and supporting a
network of state and regional recycling contacts.
This Web site provides information on financing
and technical assistance for recycling businesses,
as well as other market development tools.

Municipal Solid Waste: .
This site includes information on recycling,
source reduction, and reuse. It contains state
municipal solid waste data and the latest facts
and figures on waste generation and disposal.
                                        PARK & RECREATION PRODUCTS
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WasteWise: . Waste-
Wise is a free, voluntary EPA program through
which organizations eliminate costly municipal
solid waste, benefltting their bottom line and the
environment. The program provides hands-on
assistance to members to help them purchase or
manufacture recycled-content products, prevent
waste, and recycle solid waste materials.

Federal Register (FR):  and . Notices promulgat-
ing CPG I (60 FR 21370) and RMAN I (60 FR
21386), May 1, 1995. FR notices promulgating
CPG II (62 FR 60961) and RMAN II (62 FR
60975), November 13, 1997. FR notices promul-
gating CPG III (65 FR 3070) and RMAN III (65
FR 3082), January 19, 2000. FR notices promul-
gating CPG IV (69 FR 24028) and RMAN IV (69
FR 24039), April 30, 2004. FR notices promul-
gating CPG V (72 FR 52475) and RMAN V (72
FR 52561), September 14, 2007.
          Other Government
          Sources
U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)
Environmental Products Overview: . GSA offers a variety of
environmental products and services to its federal
customers to assist them in their efforts to com-
ply with procurement responsibilities outlined in
federal environmental laws and regulations. This
overview contains information about environ-
mentally oriented products and services in the
Federal Supply Service Supply System. To access
GSA Advantage!, GSA's Internet -based ordering
system, and order any GSA product, visit .

    Park and Outdoor Recreational Equipment,
    Federal Supply Schedule Group 78, Part 1,
    Schedule C, Classes 7830: Lists a variety of
    park and recreation products available for pur-
    chase. For more information, contact GSA.

    Environmental Products Guide: . This
    guide is designed to help procurement of-
    ficials identify environmentally preferable
    products and services. It contains nearly
    3,000 items, including many recycled-con-
    teiit products.
Office of the Federal Environmental Executive
(OFEE): . OFEE's mission is to
advocate, coordinate, and assist environmental
efforts of the federal community in waste preven-
tion, recycling, affirmative procurement of CPG
items, and the acquisition of recycled and envi-
ronmentally preferable products and services.

    Greening the Government: A Guide to
    Implementing Executive Order 13101:
    . This guide
    provides detailed information on the require-
    ments of E.O. 13101, which established a
    process for amending the CPG and issuing
    RMANs. E.O. 13101 preceded E.O. 13423
    and established many requirements and
    definitions that are still in effect. Updated
    in February 2001, the E.O. is available from
    OFEE at .

    Executive Order 13423: Strengthening
    Federal Environmental, Energy, and Trans-
    portation Management: . Published in January
    2007, this Order replaced E.O.  13101 and
    requires federal agencies to purchase green
    products and services, including recycled-
    content products, energy- and water-efficient
    products, biobased products, and environ-
    mentally preferable products and services.
    Although E.O. 13423 revoked E.O. 13101,
    EPA continues to follow certain procedures
    of E.O.  13101 since they are consistent with
    the requirements of RCRA 6002 (e).

    Federal Green Purchasing Program: . The Federal Trade
Commission issued Guides for the Use of Envi-
ronmental Marketing Claims in May 1998.

California Recycled-Content Product Database:
. This site contains
information on reasons to buy recycled-content
products and how to procure them, and pro-
vides access to a database with information on
products, as well as manufacturers, distributors,
reprocessors, mills, and converters across the
country who procure or produce these products.
                                 PARK & RECREATION PRODUCTS
                                           PAGE 5

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King County Recycled Product Procurement Pro-
gram: . This site describes the tools and tech-
niques developed by King County, Washington,
agencies for purchasing recycled products.
     Additional Sources

Buy Recycled Business Alliance: . The Alliance includes over 3,200
companies and organizations committed to
increasing their use of recycled-content products
and materials in their day-to-day operations. The
Alliance offers educational materials, a quarterly
newsletter, and product-specific guides. Public
purchasing entities can join for free.

Official Recycled Products Guide: . This
directory lists more than 5,000 manufacturers
and distributors of recycled-content products.

Recycled Plastic Products Source Book: . This booklet lists
more than 1,400 plastic products from approxi-
mately 300 manufacturers.

Recycling Data Network Information Services:
. This
commercial Web site provides access, on a sub-
scription basis, to a recycled-content products
database of over 4,500 listings in 700 product
classifications. It also provides a reference library
and a newsletter. Managed by the publisher of the
Official Recycled Products Guide, the product
database is considered to be the largest of its kind.
                                  PARK & RECREATION PRODUCTS
                                            PAGE 6

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