Yes, sustainability and energy efficiency are required for all Federal agencies. Sustainability and energy efficiency are required for new buildings, existing buildings, equipment, appliances, and fleet. The Chief's letter of January 9, 2007 emphasizes that sustainability is required within the Forest Service. Forest Service Handbook 7309.11, Chapter 70 explains sustainability requirements for buildings.
The Forest Service must comply with USDA Departmental Regulation 5500-001, Facilities Energy and Water Conservation and Utilities Management (DR-5500-001). It sets specific requirements for reducing energy use, purchasing or generating renewable energy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing water use, purchasing energy-efficient equipment and appliances, and installing energy use-tracking equipment.
DR-5500-001 was written to guide UDSA agencies in complying with the dozens of Federal laws, regulations, and orders addressing different aspects of sustainable development in Federal facilities. These include:
- Executive Order 13423 (2007)
- Executive Order 13514 (2009)
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The Energy Policy Act of 2005—if you don't want to wade through the entire text, here's a bulleted list of the major provisions that affect Federal agencies
In addition, the Code of Federal Regulations and various procurement guidelines and regulations establish performance standards and mandate consideration of environmental performance. These requirements are described in part 1.3 Current Federal Regulations of the Federal Energy Management Program's publication Greening Federal Facilities.
The Forest Service Sustainable Operations web site contains information about Forest Service sustaibnability policies and projects. USDA also has a Sustainable Operations web site that contains information about USDA sustainability policies and projects.