Family/Community Involvement

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2. Health Education Physical Education Family/Community Involvement Health Promotion for Staff Health Services Nutrition Services Healthy School Environment Counseling, Psychological & Social Services 2

3. First and foremost: When using any chemical, always follow the label. • This will help to ensure the safe use of any cleaner. 3

4. What is Green Cleaning? Green Cleaning simply means cleaning to protect health without harming the environment. 4

5. What is Green Cleaning? A Green Cleaning program goes beyond chemical and equipment choices. It includes creating and implementing policies, procedures, training and shared responsibilities to minimize impacts of cleaning materials on the health of building occupants while protecting the environment. 5

6. It ensures more positive environmental attributes (biodegradability, low toxicity, low volatile organic compound content, reduced packaging, low life-cycle energy use). • Certain ingredients in cleaning products can present hazard concerns to exposed populations, such as skin and eye irritations for workers. What is Green Cleaning? 6

7. Janitorial staff and others who perform cleaning can be exposed to concentrated cleaning products. • Proper training and use of a Chemical Management System (a set of formal procedures to ensure proper storage, handling, and use) can greatly minimize or prevent exposure to concentrated cleaning products during handling and use. • Choosing less hazardous cleaning products minimizes harmful impacts to custodial workers and building occupants. Benefits of Buying Green 7

8. Benefits of Buying Green By choosing less hazardous cleaning products and state-of-the art machinery, you will reduce exposures by: • improving indoor air quality • reducing water and ambient air pollution • ensuring the effectiveness of cleaning in removing biological and other contaminants from the building's interior. 8

9. Benefits of Buying Green • Buying concentrated cleaners that have appropriate handling safeguards and reusable, reduced, or recyclable packaging helps reduce packaging waste and saves transportation energy. • Buying less hazardous cleaners may reduce costs when it comes time to properly dispose of any leftover cleaners. 9

10. What Can You Do? • Purchasers should examine as many relevant product attributes as possible, recognizing that tradeoffs are inevitable. • For example, one product may be made with renewable resources (a desirable characteristic), while another product has a lower VOC content (also a desirable characteristic). 10

11. What Can You Do? • Purchasers should be careful in interpreting vague or generic claims such as "environmentally friendly," "eco safe," etc. • Purchasers should ask vendors and manufacturers offering green cleaning products to clearly and specifically define their green claims. 11

12. What Can You Do? Purchasers must simply try to make the best decision possible with the information available. • Consider your organization's budget, policies and priorities. 12

13. What Can You Do? How can you make an informed purchasing decision? • Many organizations incorporate some of these attributes into their cleaning service contract specifications. • Consider the following list of attributes, in addition to price and performance, when selecting environmentally preferable cleaning products. 13

14. Include environmental factors as well as traditional considerations of price and performance as part of the normal purchasing process. • Emphasize pollution prevention early in the purchasing process. • Examine multiple environmental attributes throughout a product's or service's life cycle. • Compare relative environmental impacts when selecting products and services. • Collect and base purchasing decisions on accurate and meaningful information about environmental performance. EPA’s Five Guiding Principles when Purchasing Green Cleaners (Sources: Choose Green Report on General Purpose Cleaners, Green Seal, March 1998; Green Seal Standard and Environmental Evaluation for General-Purpose, Bathroom, and Glass Cleaners Used for Industrial and Institutional Purposes, October 2000; Hormonally Active Agents in the Environment, National Research Council, National Academy Press, 1999) 14

15. What Can You Do? Purchasers should examine as many relevant product attributes as possible, recognizing that tradeoffs are inevitable. • For example, one product may be made with renewable resources (a desirable characteristic), while another product may have a lower VOC content (also a desirable characteristic). 15

16. What Can You Do? The best Green Cleaning purchasing value takes into account: • performance • price • availability • regulatory requirements • environmental impact • necessary training 16

17. Be aware of vague or generic claims such as "environmentally friendly," "eco safe," etc. • Purchasers should ask vendors and manufacturers to clearly and specifically define their green claims. What Can You Do? 17

18. Product Content and Use • Clear labeling on use and disposal Minimal presence of or exposure to potentially harmful chemicals, such as: • Corrosive or strongly irritating substances. • Substances classified as known or likely human carcinogens or reproductive toxicants • Ozone-depleting compounds as listed in Clean Air Act regulations • Regulated hazardous materials (products classified as hazardous waste; products that trigger OSHA hazard communication requirements). Things to Consider Prior to Purchasing 18

19. Product Content and Use • Use of renewable resources, such as biobased solvents from citrus, seed, vegetable, and pine oils • Low VOC content. • Biodegradable - "Ready biodegradability" is a definition meant to ensure that a material degrades relatively quickly in an aquatic aerobic environment. • Low toxicity in aquatic species such as fish or aquatic invertebrates • Concentrated formulas with appropriate handling safeguards Things to Consider Prior to Purchasing 19

20. Product Content and Use • Low flammability (flash point > 200 degrees Fahrenheit) • Designed for use in cold water to conserve energy • Limit use of disinfectants in areas where people are likely to come into contact with contaminated surfaces (bathroom fixtures, doorknobs, other high-touch surfaces). • Many general purpose cleaning tasks do not typically require the use of disinfectants (walls, floors, other surfaces with minimal hand contact). • Conduct training on proper use of products Things to Consider Prior to Purchasing 20

21. Product Packaging and Shipping • Clear labeling and information on use and disposal • Efficient (light weight, reduced volume) • Products shipped in bulk • Recyclable packaging • Refillable bottles • Pump sprays rather than aerosols • Packaging and dilution systems designed to reduce exposure to the product Things to Consider Prior to Purchasing 21

22. Training Staff Is Key Conduct training on the proper use of new products and machinery • Old habits are hard to break – Train, train, train, and help staff see new results. • Create a general training plan for all staff, include custodial, teachers, principals. • Perform more detailed training for custodial staff (annual, semi-annual, especially for newly-hired staff.) • Evaluate and ensure good practices are followed. • Include a feedback loop for staff to register comments/complaints/suggestions. • Review plans yearly and edit the plan and protocols, accordingly. • Post your results based on toxicity reductions, cost savings, waste streams reduced, health improvements (fewer asthma attacks, other health improvements.) 22

23. http://www.epa.gov/epp/pubs/cleaning.htm For more information about Green Cleaning, please visit: 23