The Democrats have been saying for months now that they plan to turn this summer's national convention in Denver into the greenest such event to date. While apparently on track to make it so, the Dems have also run into a few unexpected roadblocks.

Take, for instance, the fanny packs. The host committee for the convention ordered 15,000 of them for volunteers, but the order came with specific guidelines. Not only did organizers request that the packs be made made in the USA out of organic cotton, but also that they be made by unionized labor.

As the DNC recently discovered, no such combination exists. Same goes for the baseball caps, as the Wall Street Journal reported this week. "We have a union cap or an organic cap," said merchandiser Bob DeMasse. "But we don't have a union-organic offering."

Luckily for the Democrats, other green convention plans are progressing as scheduled. Among them:

• All banners will be made of canvas or corn-based bio-plastics, and then recycled into handbags after the convention.
• Hundreds of free bikes will be available for delegates and other convention-goers.
• The stage where Barack Obama is to be coronate d will be made of salvaged plywood and other recycled or reused material.
• All signs and placards will be made from post-consumer recycled or biodegradable materials.
• And in a move that our friends at Envirovore will appreciate, the DNC's catering guidelines discourage selling any fried food, and instead push for organic and locally-grown ingredients. At least 50 percent of each meal must include fruits and/or vegetables.