Many chief information officers (CIOs) suffer as they try to get to grips with the complex area of IT regulatory compliance.

Now, with the increasing demand for environmental sensitivity, there is yet another regime to get to grips with ­ – green IT compliance.

However, there are plenty of opportunities that arise for businesses which are quick off the mark and understand the legal aspects:

This article looks at some of the regulatory drivers in the area and examines the impact green computing is having on the IT market.

What are the commercial reasons for adopting a green IT policy?

The increased attention consumers are paying to green concerns is one issue. Such concerns are also increasingly important for how the public and private sectors award procurement contracts to suppliers.

The private sector is coming under increasing pressure from customers, shareholders and investors in terms of how they deal with environmental issues. Suppliers are also being compelled to address their own approach on green topics, to help customers deliver on their own environmental objectives.

Providers looking to secure lucrative public sector contracts, for example, have to pay greater attention to how they incorporate the green agenda. Perhaps surprisingly, the public sector leads the way with regards to green procurement standards.

What are the key legal drivers influencing green IT procurement in the public sector?

Put simply, the better your regulatory compliance, the fewer hurdles there will be for your firm to overcome in procuring contracts from the public sector.

A number of public sector initiatives are driving forward the agenda on green public purchasing. At the wider level, the European Union (EU) is committed to raising the level of green public procurement by 2010.

At a domestic level, the UK government has set a goal to be among the EU leaders in sustainable procurement by 2009, and wants to use its spend to reduce environmental impact while demonstrating leadership to others.

The UK government expects suppliers to align themselves with its sustainability strategy. It will increasingly look to vendors to demonstrate an awareness of green issues against specific targets as a requirement of the supply contract.

However, although EU procurement rules increasingly allow sustainability issues to be considered in the decision-making process, taking such concerns into account must not infringe the principles of fair and open competition.

What role can IT directors play in addressing environmental issues?

Now is a good time for CIOs and IT directors to take a lead role in the environmental decision-making process.

The Companies Act 2006 requires a director of a company to act in a way he or she considers would be most likely to promote the success of the company. In so doing, a director must have regard to, among other things, the impact of the company’s operations on the environment.

Through the Companies Act, we are also seeing some interesting developments in annual reporting and the way in which shareholders and investors are putting increasing pressure on companies to address their environmental impact.

In this regard, CIOs and IT directors can make a real difference.

How is legislation seeking to tackle the environmental impacts of IT hardware?

Each year an estimated one million tonnes of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) are discarded by UK householders and businesses. The disposal of electrical and electronic equipment in landfill sites or through incineration creates environmental problems.

When hardware is disposed of, there is a risk that many of the toxic substances that make up the equipment will escape and cause damage to the environment and human health.

In recognition of this, the EU has introduced legislation that is having a major effect on how WEEE is treated and how products are designed. The legislation comprises:

Other legislation such as waste management controls on WEEE and packaging waste will also have implications for companies.