It's Green...But Are You Sure?

In 1989, Mobil Oil Company introduced a new line of plastic trash bags called Hefty. A significant part of their advertising campaign, to both introduce the products and grow market share, was to call the trash can liners "degradable." According to the company, the liners had a special photodegradable

As the manufacturer described it, as soon as the bags were exposed to sun, wind or rain, they would begin degrading. But because most garbage in North America is taken from homes and facilities and buried in landfills relatively quickly, the bags were not exposed to the elements long enough to ever begin degrading. The bags did not degrade once buried and, because of this, the claim so enraged environmentalists that ultimately seven states sued the company claiming false advertising.

This situation has been repeated scores of times in the past 30 years by many companies. Manufacturers knowingly or unknowingly labeled their products green, biodegradable, environmentally-friendly and other terms, only to have it discovered years later that the statements were often not true.

Today, green cleaning products have become a centerpiece in the industry - with as many as 70 manufacturers producing environmentally-preferable products. And, with an expected 15,000 distributors and end-users about to attend the ISSA/INTERCLEAN? USA 2006 trade show in Chicago, this is an opportune time to help attendees better understand what is green and, more importantly, what is not.

The standards

Since 1988, the EcoLogo^sup M^ Program and more recently organizations, such as Green Seal?, the Carpet and Rug Institute and others, have introduced standards that help the end customer determine if the green claims on products are true. These independent, third-party organizations often work with accredited, independent laboratories to evaluate products seeking certification.

EcoLogo and similar organizations may certify a broad spectrum of products. A specific set of criteria is established for the various product categories, ranging from paints and cleaning chemicals to tools, equipment, building materials and automobile and boating products. And, the criteria and standards may change, often becoming more stringent and protective of the user, building occupants and environment. When this happens, the manufacturer may need to reformulate the product so that it will meet and pass the new standards.

In most situations, these certifying organizations have done all the homework for the end customer and their endorsements are respected by most parties. Furthermore, some of these certifying organizations will conduct manufacturer site audits, often randomly, to make sure the certified product is still being manufactured in the eco-preferable manner that won it certification. This monitoring of environmental claims is critical in order to protect not only the user and the environment, but also the integrity of the certifying organization.

Never settle

However, the end-user must still remain somewhat vigilant. There have been situations where the science of certification has been "influenced" by a manufacturer or appears subjective. For instance, a New York-based environmental group has devised a scorecard rating system to evaluate just the products produced by a major American manufacturer. Some critics and environmentalists have questioned the criteria used and some of the products that have passed these scorecard criteria have not been certified or endorsed by other certification organizations.

Because of this, the end customer must ask: Is the third-party certification organization honored and respected? Do the certification criteria used by the certifying organization apply to all manufacturers making the same or similar products? Are its certification methodologies accepted by leading environmentalists, industry experts, government regulators and other certifying organizations?

For end-users, often the best source to help answer these important questions is their distributor. Many, realizing green cleaning has become and will continue to become a major part of the industry, have made it a point to attend seminars and training programs to learn as much as they can about environmentally-preferable cleaning. They can then take this knowledge and help educate their customers about the meaning behind and value of a green endorsement.

Fortunately, in the industry, most of the products that have attained certification have done so through credible and reliable organizations. Attendees should look for the marks or labels of these organizations as proof that they have been tested and are environmentally-preferable.

However, they should also realize that green cleaning is part of a system. A chemical may be certified and have reduced VOCs (volatile organic compounds), but if the vacuum cleaners or floor machines release contaminants into the air as they are used, the benefits of the chemicals may be naught. Again, distributors can help their customers with this issue and piece together complete systems that protect building occupants, cleaning professionals and our planet.