Enhancing Green Public Procurement using 100% annually renewable innovative resources in gardening products

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

BACKGROUND

Gardening is an area that receives little attention in terms of green public procurement (GPP). For example, polypropylene-based plastic coverings are widely used in the gardening sector but natural alternatives such as jute and coconut are not popular because they are heavy, difficult to handle and visually unappealing.

OBJECTIVES

The basic objective of this project is to enhance green public procurement (GPP) by demonstrating to municipal authorities the ecological advantages of three, high-quality, innovative gardening products based on 100% renewable resources. These “Hortaflex” products are a substitute for conventional mulch and barrier fleeces, which are made from oil-based materials (polypropylene). The life span of these innovative products is estimated at 3-5 years, whereas competitive alternatives have a useful life of 2-3 years. Moreover, the biopolymers used in these new products can be composted at the end of the life cycle, whereas conventional polypropylene needs to be incinerated.

Specific objectives of the project include:

Testing Hortaflex weed control and demonstrating its environmental advantages and cost-effectiveness in comparison with competitor products;

Demonstrating the environmental benefits of Hortaflex fertility mats; and

Performing an LCA on a biopolymer-based weed control system.

Expected results:

The project will demonstrate the environmental and economic benefits of Hortaflex products;

An installation and maintenance manual will be produced for each product;

Biodegradable weed control products, fertility solutions and erosion protection will be added to the GPP priority list;

The first full-scale implementation of the weed control system will take place; and

An LCA report will be available for the polylactic acid (PLA)-based weed control system, the fertility mats and the erosion system.