Helping to improve the environment one less chemical at a time!
As defined in Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Green Cleaning is a term that has been coined to describe a trend away from chemically-reactive and toxic cleaning products which contain various toxic chemicals. Some of which emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) causing respiratory and dermatological problems among other adverse effects. Green cleaning can also describe the way residential and industrial cleaning products are manufactured, packaged, and distributed. If the manufacturing process is environmentally-friendly and the products are biodegradable, then the term ‘green’ or eco-friendly may apply.
Standards set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limit human and environmental exposure to toxic chemicals but do not entirely eliminate them in general. Reading the small print on labels is the only way to verify the components of a product but manufacturing, packaging and distribution may all contribute to environmental degradation.
Green cleaning companies are held to higher standards in general than federal or state-mandated ‘green’ cleaning rules. The purpose of ‘going green’ is to address human illnesses that arise from exposure as well as damage to the environment (water, soil, air) from disposal of these products. The role chemical exposure has in creating allergic sensitivities, reducing immunity, and contributing to cancer and other diseases, is a long-respected field of research in medicine. For example, research on human and animal exposure to formaldehyde (formalin), benzene and other solvents has resulted in legislation to limit exposure but has not completely banned these products.
More about Green Cleaning
Green cleaning, in a commercial/industrial setting, can mean a holistic approach to facility cleaning and maintenance that can provide health benefits, improved productivity, reduced liability, cost savings and improved community relations. Typically, green cleaning means products and processes that are not only as effective at cleaning as traditional products, but that are also more cost effective when evaluated over the length of the maintenance cycle. Recent advancements in chemical technology have made it possible to develop cleaning products that are as effective as traditional products, but that do not contain harsh ingredients.
The spring equinox is fast approaching, and soon we can all throw open our windows and let the March breezes blow winter away. It’s about time too! Levels of pollutants in indoor air can be from two or more than 100 times higher than outdoors, according to the U.S. EPA. That indoor pollution is due in large part to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that evaporate from home decorating and cleaning products.
So step one for spring cleaners is:
Open a window and let those pollutants out! Yet even in this season, when a vase of daffodils can fill a room with a lovely natural scent, many consumers stubbornly keep using synthetic room fresheners and fragranced cleaning products that are full of VOCs and other toxic chemicals. There can make our indoor air unhealthy, provoke skin, eye, and respiratory reactions, and hard the natural environment.
according to a study published in New Scientist in 1999, in homes where aerosol sprays and air fresheners were used frequently, mothers experienced 25 percent more headaches and were 19 percent more likely to suffer from depression, and infants under six months of age had 30 percent more ear infections and 22 percent higher incidence of diarrhea.
Let E & J Cleaning Services create a well-designed Green Cleaning Program for you.
Some of the benefits of a well-designed green cleaning program can include:
- Improved productivity and morale of building occupants
- Improved health of cleaning staff and building occupants, helping to reduce sick days
- Recognition in the community for reducing resource usage and pollution
- Reduce liability from worker safety issues.
- Earn points towards LEED certification from US Green Building Council
- Satisfaction from helping to make the facility and community a better place.
Click Here for more information about our Green Cleaning Solution