As we approach another possible lock down, businesses will be in need of additional financial help. PPP might be on the way. Are you working from home? Learn how to access $500 from the Santa Cruz County Green Business Program. Eligibility is as easy as 1-2-3 if you have:

• The heater and/or air conditioning is being checked and cleaned twice a year​.​ If you don’t have either, or your landlord is responsible for this, please let us know.

• All light bulbs under the business’s control are LED, CFL, or the thin fluorescent bulbs (less than one inch wide).​ ​If you are not responsible for lighting, or have some lights that are not under your control on site, please let us know.

• The business purchases only Green Business approved cleaning products and paper products. If you use a janitorial service or your landlord manages product purchasing, please let us know.

• All your faucets and shower heads are water efficient.​ ​We can help you determine this and, if any are needed, we have some freebies for you.

• All your toilets and urinals are high efficiency. ​If not, let us know and we can look into rebates and free devices to lower the flow rate. ​If your landlord manages the plumbing, please let us know.

• Your waste and recycling have effective protection from rain e.g. a good lid or are under a covered area​. ​If your landlord manages this area, please let us know.

• You have clearly marked recycling bins wherever there are trash bins and you received a free waste audit from your waste hauler​ (whoever you pay your garbage, compost and/or recycling bill to). ​We can help coordinate this for you and provide free signage and bins. If your business does not pay this bill or it is included in your rent, please let us know.

•  You offer some support for employees and customers using alternative modes of transportation. ​If you currently have facilities or policies in place including bike racks or storage space, showers for cyclists, or incentives for employees, please let us know. If not, we will help you implement something either for free or using our rebate fund.

• You ensure that any storm drains on site that you are responsible for are cleared of debris and that you commit to only letting rain down the storm drain.​ ​If you do not have any storm drains on site that you are responsible for, please let us know.

• Invite one business to our program.​ We have a referral email template. Simply copy/paste, edit as you wish, and cc Brooke at ​bwright@environmentalin.com​.

• Do business with another Green Business.​ ​You can purchase all the items you need to go green by shopping green at greenbusinessca.org. We can help you with this.

• Have an end-of-challenge checkin call with our team to discuss benefits of and steps to full certification.

Sign up for a quick 30-minute Zoom session to learn the specifics.