What Attributes We Consider When Selecting Green
Cleaning Products?
Using products that minimize negative human health and environmental
impacts is an important and challenging step in greening our
services. We are faced with the
daunting task of choosing products that produce effective, hygienic
results while minimizing risk to employees, building occupants, and
the environment.
Our company is using the two main categories of
products: general supplies and cleaning chemicals. These product
categories have specific attributes that can be examined and
adjusted to increase environmental performance. The following
sections outline some of these attributes, including some of the
standards that are to be used to transition to a green cleaning
program. Generally, the standards can be used in two ways:
we buy products that are already certified by a
particular standard (e.g., Green Seal), and we review the
standards and use them as guidelines when selecting and purchasing
cleaning products.
General Supplies
The manufacture of any product involves the use of raw materials and
energy. These materials, such as petroleum for plastic and trees for
paper, are often mined, extracted, or harvested from the Earth.
Sometimes manufacturers can recycle used materials instead of
extracting "virgin" materials, which can save energy and natural
resources and prevent pollution. To encourage this process, we use
products with recovered material (recycled) content whenever
possible. In addition to conserving resources, using recycled-content
products helps keep trash out of landfills and incinerators, each of
which can pose environmental risks.
In an effort to prevent waste in the first place (also called
source reduction), we take steps
to reduce the amount of product or packaging that must be throw
away. Non-chemical janitorial supplies, such as paper towels, facial
tissue, bathroom tissue, industrial wipes and rags, and plastic
trash bags, all contribute to the solid waste stream. For example,
roll paper towels perforated into small sheets are less wasteful
than individual folded towels, as each individual uses less paper.
In addition, purchasing janitorial supplies that have been
manufactured and shipped with less packaging will help reduce the
amount of waste they create when thrown away.
In addition to recycled content, paper janitorial products can be
made without traditional chlorine bleaching processes, which can be
harmful to human health and the environment. Bleaching paper with
chlorine-based compounds releases extremely toxic chemicals into the
environment. The most dangerous is dioxin. Once released into the
environment, dioxins are persistent because natural bacteria cannot
effectively break it down. It also bioaccumulates and bio-magnifies.
Paper products can remain unbleached or they can be bleached with
hydrogen peroxide or other less-toxic alternatives, especially in
the case of paper towels, bathroom and facial tissue. Bleaching
options differ depending upon the raw material used.
Sample of Environmental Attributes for our Janitorial Supplies
Recovered materials: These are materials that have been
recovered or diverted from solid waste. This term does not include
materials and byproducts generated from, and commonly reused within,
an original manufacturing process.
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