Australian Government ICT Sustainability Plan
What's happening
The following activities aim to assist agencies to understand and to implement the measures included in the Australian Government ICT Sustainability Plan 2010 - 2015.
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Implementation update
Guidance materials and support
A suite of guidance materials to support the implementation of the ICT Sustainability Plan by Australian Government agencies has been developed. The information will also help the ICT industry to understand the Plan and the Government's expectations.
The material includes 6 Guidelines and 10 Fact Sheets. The guidelines and several fact sheets focus on Section 2 of the Plan which relates to ICT procurement and associated consumables and waste. The other fact sheets (4, 8, 10) provide direction or suggestions for agencies on ICT sustainability initiatives and reporting.
Feedback on the guidance materials is always welcome, just email your comments to sustainableICT@environment.gov.au.
Additional support materials and information are available to Australian Government agencies through the ICT Sustainability for Australian Government Agencies (ISAGA) GovDex community site. Access can be requested by sending an email to sustainableICT@environment,gov.au
Green ICT Procurement
In addition to the mandatory procurement measures introduced through the ICT Sustainability Plan a number of other initiatives that support sustainable procurement have occurred over the past 12 months. The Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities has provided input to the Australian Government Information Management Office (AGIMO) so that sustainable ICT elements are integrated into the intitiatives. Some examples of sustainable procurement initiatives include:
Green ICT Procurement Toolkit
The Green ICT Procurement Toolkit provides guidance and tools to help agencies when procuring ICT products and services, including environmental performance clauses which can be incorporated into Request for Tender (RFT) documents and in resultant Contracts. Feedback on the toolkit is welcome and can be emailed to sustainableICT@environment.gov.au.
- Green ICT Procurement Toolkit
www.finance.gov.au/e-government/strategy-and-governance/sustainable-ict/green-ICT-procurement-toolkit.html
Whole-of-Government ICT Procurement Arrangements
A number of ICT related coordinated procurement contracting arrangements have been established over the past 12 months. These whole-of-government initiatives, established by the Department of Finance and Deregulation and mandatory for all FMA agencies, aim to maximise market benefits and deliver efficiencies and savings to agencies and the Government.
Agencies should regularly refer to the "Whole-of-Government Procurement Contracts, Arrangements and Initiatives" section of the Department of Finance and Deregulation website to review all current coordinated procurement arrangements related to ICT.
Currently, the following coordinated procurement arrangements are active:
- Desktop Hardware Panel - enquiries to ictprocurement@finance.gov.au
- Major Office Machines Panels - enquiries to momcontract@finance.gov.au
- Telecommunications Commodities, Carriage and Associated Services Panel - enquiries to ictprocurement@finance.gov.au
ICT energy reporting through OSCAR
Under the ICT Sustainability Plan, in October each year Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 (FMA Act) agencies are required to submit their annual ICT energy consumption data to the government through the Australian Government's Online System for Comprehensive Activity Reporting (OSCAR) tool which is managed by the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency. The data is collected through an "ICT Questionnaire" within OSCAR and is analysed and used for monitoring and reporting purposes against the Energy and Carbon Management components of the Plan (Section 3).
- Online System for Comprehensive Activity Reporting (OSCAR)
www.climatechange.gov.au/government/initiatives/oscar.aspx
Guidelines and ICT energy estimators have been developed to assist agencies with their ICT energy reporting, and are available through GovDex. Access to GovDex can be requested by emailing sustainableICT@environment.gov.au
Agency ICT Energy Management Plan (ICT Sustainability Plan)
An agency ICT energy management plan (EMP) can provide a framework to assist the agency to better understand their ICT energy use and to develop strategies to contain or reduce ICT energy use and costs. A key activity involved in developing an ICT energy management plan is sourcing business data for ICT energy reporting (see above).
While only FMA Act agencies with large annual spends on ICT have been required to develop and regularly review ICT EMPs to date (they did this early in 2010) it is strongly recommended that all Australian Government agencies consider developing an ICT EMP to give greater direction and focus to their ICT energy use planning and reporting.
Some agencies are choosing to integrate their ICT energy management planning into existing agency-wide energy management plans, environmental management plans/systems or to expand it into an agency ICT sustainability plan.
Agencies interested in developing an ICT EMP/Sustainability Plan can email sustainableICT@environment.gov.au for a template and further information.
ICT Sustainability Scorecard
Under the Plan, agencies are asked to develop and maintain an ICT Sustainability Scorecard. Fact Sheet 4 in the Guidance Materials suite provides advice on developing a basic scorecard. It is important that agencies continuously collect the data and information they need to monitor their progress against the measures and targets of the ICT Sustainability Plan. This will ensure that they are able to submit the information needed as part of the mid-term review of the Plan in 2012-2013.
ICT Sustainability Initiatives
To assist agencies in their implementation of the Plan a comprehensive list of proposed ICT sustainability initiatives have been included as Appendix 2 of the Plan. Some of these initiatives fall under the mandatory requirements of the Plan while others have been included to help agencies in their planning and implementation efforts and, ultimately, to meet the ICT environmental performance targets. Agencies can add other initiatives to the list and also use the four columns provided to determine the current status of their ICT sustainability capability.
Contact details
Government ICT Sustainability
Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Populations and Communities
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601
Email: sustainableICT@environment.gov.au
Phone: 02 6274 1799
Latest news & events
Implementation activities
Find out the latest on the implementation of the Plan including the development of guidance materials/fact sheets for agencies.
Guidance materials
A suite of ICT Sustainability Plan guidance materials (guidelines and fact sheets) is available to assist agencies and suppliers with implementation of the Plan.
Coordinated Procurement
Mandatory ICT coordinated procurement arrangements have been introduced by the Department of Finance and Deregulation in the past 12 months. Information can be found on their website.
Resources
- ICT websites and guidelines - Australian Government, international
