This week Actal, the Dutch Advisory Board on Administrative Burdens (an independent advisory body that advises the Dutch government on red tape reduction issues) published a report on sustainable purchasing by the government. The conclusion; it significantly increases costs, stifles innovation and doesn’t make a difference in term of sustainability. Actal therefore advises to structurally review the Dutch government policy on sustainable purchasing.
This is both a disappointing and a non-surprising conclusion. In principal a sound policy to guide companies, citizens and others towards a more sustainable economy is to be applauded. Yet, the bureaucracy that was set up to implement this policy was Kafkaesque from the beginning.
Today’s NRC Handelsblad not only covered an item on this Actal publication, but also included an article with the heading “solar power in the American army backpack”; (Zonne-energie in Amerikaanse legerrugzak). It tells how the American army experiments with solar power, for example in Afghanistan. The driver? The need to become more energy independent. High oil prices and other challenges in oil supply accelerate innovations in renewable energy. This kind of awareness triggers a need to change which is a stronger driver for a transition towards sustainability than any purchasing policy could offer.
The same article covers a statement of Frank Verhoeven, ceo of Vos Logistics who promotes natural gas as an alternative to oil. His company has a filling station and will invest in new trucks. I guess he is not waiting for bureaucratic purchasing policies. The government would serve him and other companies better by offering a clear, consistent and long-term policy which would help to make sound investment decisions. In a way: the best way the government can facilitate the transition towards a cleaner economy is by setting a basic framework and then go on a holiday. In other words: reduce red tape, stop making new rules and changing them all the time.