California government offices must install carpet containing at least 10 percent recycled materials beginning Sept. 1, according to a standard recently adopted by an interagency task force.

The new California Gold Sustainable Carpet Standard is designed to keep material out of the state´s landfills and ensure healthier working conditions for employees, said Ron Joseph, director of the California Department of General Services. The carpet standard is the latest step in the state government´s efforts to implement an environmentally preferable purchasing law.

In addition to recycling requirements, the new standard also calls for compliance with strict guidelines for protecting the health of building occupants by reducing the amount of volatile organic compounds that escape into the indoor air from new carpeting.

Every year, the state purchases an estimated 12 million square feet of new carpeting and disposes of about 5.3 million square feet of worn-out carpeting.

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