Property owner going green?

You may remember that I've tried to figure out how to reduce the amount of paper that I use in the office. This led me to the unfortunate discovery that the paper I'd been throwing in the recycle bins seemed to be ending up with the trash. I later found out that the owner of the building in which I work is the generically named Equity Office Properties Trust, and that they are in fact the largest property owner in Boston. Although they're supposed to be collecting recycling in my office, it seems that the large blue recycling bin on wheels only circulates on the fourth floor. As I work on the third floor of the building, we for some reason only see the grayish-black trash bin on wheels.

However, I was informed that Equity Office Properties Trust was embarking on a new initiative to improve recycling in all their buildings. Can you blame me for assuming that I was getting the brush-off?

It turns out, though, that the esteemed Equity Office Properties Trust is in fact embarking upon their own quest to go green, as reported last week in the Boston Globe.

The city's largest property owner - spurred by high energy prices and rising demand from tenants - is seeking "green" certification for all of its office buildings, marking a major milestone in Mayor Thomas M. Menino's push to make Boston the nation's most environmentally friendly city.

Now I certainly applaud the effort if Equity Office Properties Trust is indeed gong green. Unfortunately, I am rather cynical of companies with overly generic names. I am also suspicious of the motives of Mayor Menino. And of course, my recycle bin (which I never use anymore) is still dumped in with the rest of the trash.

I am on the inside, though, and if Equity Office Properties Trust does follow through with their much publicized effort, I'll be the first to congratulate them. But until I see the large blue recycling bin on wheels make the long journey down to the third floor, I reserve the right to be suspicious.