With “green” being such a buzz word today, many businesses understand the need to practice more environmentally sustainable methods — which is good not just for the environment but also for employee retention. But going green may seem like an overwhelming move: Where does one start?

The good news is that greening your business is simple. There are so many things you can do. The best way to proceed is really by simplifying and narrowing down the options that make the most sense for your business, and taking it one step at a time.

“It’s easy to be green but you can’t be green in everything,” says Tim Wymer, maintenance director for Poulsbo’s Central Market, which incorporated many green features during the store’s last remodel.

Wymer says the decision to use green features was easy — after all, Central Market was built using an extensive variety of environmentally friendly materials and techniques. The more challenging part was determining how much could be done. “We knew we had to make changes and update equipment. We looked at the technology and what’s available, and mixed and matched what best suited our needs,” he says. “We bought the best selection we could while considering the return on investment… Function, cost and environment — all three go together for us.”

Wymer suggests businesses should integrate new equipment with the existing one instead of doing a clean sweep. This helps extend the lifecycle of the equipment as well as prevents unnecessary additions to the landfill. Central Market used that integration approach while upgrading to new, environmentally friendly refrigeration. Other new features were skylights to maximize use of daylight and addition of dimmable light packages with fluorescent lights, both of which cut on energy use. They also used low-VOC paints, which are competitively priced with high-end paints. “Not only do they not emit a lot of solvents and gasses into the environment, but they also help create a healthy environment,” Wymer says.

Niels Nicolaisen, who coordinates the EnviroStars program in Kitsap County , says, there are many easy and cost-effective strategies businesses can choose if they want to become green, but they all fall in three categories. “If you’re looking at greening your business, you’re looking at waste reduction, energy reduction, and purchasing practices,” he says.

As far as purchasing practices, he says it’s a matter of implementing a policy that requires prioritizing of purchases based on price and environmental aspects .

Kitsap County has long been a leader in waste reduction and has not only changed internal processes, but has set out to help local businesses do the same. Vicki Bushnell with the Public Works Solid Waste Division does extensive work to help businesses implement environmentally sustainable practices and to educate the public. She says waste reduction is not only good for the environment, but also good for the bottom line because it will save on purchasing costs and disposal costs.

One of the local organizations she helped get started was the Bremerton Housing Authority, where a pilot project was launched in the Contract Management Services division to reduce waste. “Vicki was a bit part of our kickoff. She was able to give us a jumpstart,” says Lorna Camacho, CMS administrative assistant.

To get started, CMS created a five-person committee from different departments and narrowed down the focus to reduce waste by cutting down on paper use. Their effort, which is still ongoing, is centered on double-sided printing, electronic revision of reports and documents and reducing junk mail.

“We do a lot of printing in this shop, so this is an area where we can see a dramatic improvement in cost and waste reduction,” says Nathaniel Welch, IT manager. “It’s also easy to implement because it’s a simple thing.”

They began with a print campaign to educate co-workers about ways to reduce paper use — for example, flyers were posted by every copier and printer reminding people to use both sides. “We had this huge mailing to send out and by doing double sided, we went down to 7,500 pages from 15,000,” he says. In addition, several people were designated to sort through the recycle bins to collect papers suitable for scratch pads — the paper was then cut and stapled for reuse.

Education was important, Camacho says, and especially providing staff visuals and statistics to give them a better understanding of the impact.

Bushnell says businesses can look at aspects ranging from gasoline consumption and junk mail to packaging and exchange programs . With regards to products stewardship, she gives as an example “take-back” programs for anything from computers and fluorescent bulbs to cell phones and used motor oil.

Many Kitsap County businesses offer various such programs .

Wymer says making incremental changes will allow businesses to take small steps without becoming overwhelmed, and to move in the right direction. “If people want to participate, they can do it at the light bulb level,” he says. “They can simply take out all the incandescents and put in fluorescent lights. It’s all about being good stewards of resources.”