Wishing to tout your green credentials is only natural. You’ve worked hard to make your business more environmentally friendly, and you wish to let your customers know by getting a green business certification. But which one?

Being certified green can not only save you in lower electricity, water and other energy bills. It can also be a real marketing point.But with so many groups suddenly wheeling out green credentialling, it can be hard to decide which one would be best for your business.

 ”The problem is, it’s a new, emerging area,” said Tom Hinton, president and CEO of the American Consumer Council (ACC). “As a result, there is a lack of credible organizations trying to fill the demand for certification. Until you have a few other industries and nonprofit organizations step forward, consumers and companies run the risk of subscribing to a certification process that may not deliver all that it’s propped up to be.”

The ACC launched its Green C Certification in the U.S. in June (see sidebar) after seeing a trend four years ago: Consumers wanted to support the green movement by buying from companies known for environmental stewardship, Hinton said.

“As we researched the field of environmental compliance, we found no consumer-focused, universal criteria that companies or organizations could use to tell consumers they were ‘environmentally compliant’ or acting responsibly,” Hinton said. “So we acted to fill the gap as a nonprofit organization that represents the voice of the consumer.”

The ACC isn’t alone. The Green Business Alliance in Boca Raton, Fla., debuted a certification program this year, while EarthRight Business Institute of Park City, Utah, and Sustainable Business Network of Washington, D.C. are now conducting pilot programs with plans of launching final products in late 2008 and early 2009, respectively. The city of Los Angeles also is reportedly developing one modeled after the Bay Area Green Business Program, which started 12 years ago.

Check out GreenBiz.com’s great article on the green certification process and what you should be looking for.