Be

nef
it
sofCe
rti
fi
edGr
een Cl
eani
ngSuppl
i
es
AFactSheetf
orSchoolAdmi
nist
rat
orsandPar
ent
s

Whydocl eaningsuppli
esmat t
er?
Heal thyairisessenti
alforanycl assr oom.YetaDepar tmentofEducati
onsur veyshowedthat1i n5U. S.
publicschool shaveunsat i
sfactor
yi ndoorairquali
ty,and1in4havei nadequat eventi
l
ati
on[1].A2004
Cal i
forniaAirResourcesBoar dst udyf oundthatnearl
yallcl
assroomstestedcontainedhazardouscon-
taminant ssuchasf ormaldehydeatl evelsabovegovernmentguideli
nes[2].Someoft heseexposures
stem f r
om thever yproduct
susedt okeepschool sclean.Chil
drenandst af
far eexposedtochemicalsin
tradit
ionalcleaningsuppli
est hathavebeent iedtoasthma,cancer,r
eproductiveanddevelopmentaltox-
i
ci t
y,hor monedi sr
upti
on,andneur otoxici
ty.

Onesuccessfulst
rat
egyforimpr
ovi
ngclassr
oom airiscleani
ngschool
swithcer
ti
fi
edgreencl
eani
ng
suppl
iesthatmustmeethealt
handenvir
onmentalstandards.Ei
ghtst
ateshavepassedl
awsrequi
ri
ngor
encouragi
nguseofgreencleani
ngsuppl
iesinschools.

Gr eencl
eaningsuppli
esdr amatical
lyreduceai rpoll
ution:
InEWG- sponsoredteststhatcompar edcleaningamodelcl assroom usingthreeordinar
ycleanerswit
h
threecert
if
iedgreenproducts,“greencleaning”releasedl essthanone- sixththetot
alairpol
lut
ionemitt
ed
byconventionalcl
eaning.Indi
vidualproducttestsshow t hatonaver age,cer ti
fi
edgreengeneralpur
pose
cleaner
stestedemitt
edl essthanone- f
if
thasmanyai rcontami nantsasor dinarypr
oductsandcontai
ned
j
ustone-quarterasmanychemi calsti
edtoser iousheal t
hconcer ns[3]
.

Gr eencleaningsuppl iesdonotcont ai
ni ngr
edi
entsknownt ocauseast hma:
Ast hmaisthemostcommonchr onicdiseaseamongschool -
agedchi l
drenandtheleadi
ngcauseof
schoolabsencesduet ochr onici l
lness[4,5].Work-
rel
atedasthmai salsohi
ghforteachers,i
nstruct
ional
aidesandj anitors[6].Sever alstudiessuggestthatoccupati
onalandhomeuseofconvent i
onalcleaning
productsisassoci atedwi t
hi ncreasedr iskofast
hma[ 6-9]
.Certi
fi
edgr eencl
eaningsuppli
esarepr ohib-
i
tedf rom containi
ngi ngredi
ent st hatcauseasthmaandhavel i
mitsonsomechemi calsthatexacerbate
existi
ngast hma.

Gr eencl eani
ngsuppl iesr educeunnecessar yuseofhar mf ul“antibacteri
al”agent s:
Cer ti
fi
edgr eenhandsoapsdonotcont ai
nant i
bact er
ialingredients.AU. S.FoodandDr ugAdmi ni
str
ati
on
scientif
icadvisorypaneldet erminedthat“anti
bact eri
al”soapsar enobet terthanr egularsoapsatki l
li
ng
ger msorl imit
ingthespr eadofi nfecti
on[10].TheAmer i
canMedi cal Associati
onr ecommendsavoi di
ng
“antibacteri
al”productsathome,ast heymaypr omot ebact er
ialresistancet oantibiot
ics[11].Tr
icl
osan,
anant ibacteri
alagentof tenf oundinliqui
dhandsoap,maydi sr uptthyroidandest r
ogenhor mones[ 12,
13]andf ormst oxi
cbypr oduct sintapwat erandt heenvi ronment[ 14,15] .TheCent er
sf orDiseaseCon-
trolhasf oundt hatt
ricl
osancont aminatesthebodi esof75per centoft heAmer icanpopul at
ion[16].

Greencl eaningsuppl i
esper form wellandar esaferforworkers:
Certi
fi
edgr eencleanersmustmeeti ndependentper f
ormancest andardsassur ingtheyareeffect
ive.
Theyal someetst andardst hataddr essheal t
handsaf etyconcernsf orworkers.Theseincludecriter
iaf
or
acuteandi nhal
ationtoxicity,absorptionthroughtheskin,andcombust i
bil
i
ty.Cer ti
fi
edproductsmust
havesaf etylabels,andt rainingisavai l
abletoensur eworkersuset hem safely.Conventi
onalcleaners
canposef argreatersafet yriskstocust odi
ans,especiall
yfrom inj
uriessuchaschemi calburnstoeyes
andskin.Nat i
onally
,cust odialchemi calinj
uriescostontheor derof$25mi ll
ioneachyeari nlosttimeand
workers’compensat i
on[ 17].

ewg.
org/
school
cl
eani
ngs
uppl
ies
Be
nef
it
sofCe
rti
fi
edGr
een Cl
eani
ngSuppl
i
es
AFactSheetf
orSchoolAdmi
nist
rat
orsandPar
ent
s
Gr eencl eaningsuppl iesdonotcont ai
nchemi calsofconcer ncommoni ntraditionalcleaningpr oducts:
•car ci nogens,mut agens,andr epr oduct ivetoxi ns-i dent if
iedbyst ate,nat i
onalandi nter
nat i
onalaut horit
ies
asknown,pr obabl e,r easonabl yant ici
pat edorpossi blehumant oxi ns.
•heavyMet als-suchasl eadandcadmi um thatcancauseneur odevelopment aldamagei nchildren[ 18]and
cancer[ 19].Floorf inishesi npar ti
cularmaycont ainheavymet alsashar deningagent s.
•2- but oxyet hanol-awi dely-usedsol ventt hatdamagesr edbl oodcel ls,causi nganemi a[20].Itmayal sobea
car cinogenandr epr oduct ivetoxin[ 20].Typicalhomecl eani ngusi ng2- butoxyet hanolpr oductsleadst oai rcon-
tami nat i
onexceedi ngest ablishedheal t
h- basedl i
mi tsf ort hewor kplace[ 21].
•pht hal at
es-f r
equent lyfoundi nf ragrancesi ncl eani ngpr oduct s.Dibutylpht halateisalsousedi nf l
oorfinishes
andwi ndow cl eaner s.Chi ldrenexposedt opht halatesi ni ndoorset tingsfacei ncreasedr i
skofast hmaandal ler
-
gies[ 22].Numer ousst udiesf i
ndt hatpeopl eexposedt ohi gherlevel sofpht halatesf aceincreasedr iskofmal ere-
product ivesyst em abnor mal i
ti
es[ 23]andhor monedi sr uption[24,25] .
•al kylphenolet hoxyl ates-commondet er
gent -l
ikei ngr edientst hatbr eakdowni nt
opot enthor mone- disruptors
calledal kylphenol s[ 26] .ACent ersforDi seaseCont rolst udyf oundt hatthebodi esofatl east51per centofAmer i
-
cansar econt ami nat edbyal kylphenols[ 27].TheE. U.andCanadahavebannedt hesechemi calsincleaner s.

Greencleaningcost
sthesame:
Greencleaningneednotcostmore–i nfact
,someschool shavesavedmoneybymaki ngtheswit
ch.I
nCal
iforni
a,
Fair
fi
eld-
SuisunUnif
iedSchoolDistri
ctof
fi
cial
sesti
mat ethatgreencleani
ngsavedthem asmuchas20percent
[28]
.Schoolscansavebysimpli
fyingthei
rcleani
ngpr oductinvent
ory,usi
ngconcent
rat
edproduct
sandaut
omat i
c
dil
uti
ontoreducewasteandbyt akingadvantageoflong-t
erm supplycontr
act
s[29].

New YorkandI l
l
inoi
s,thefir
ststatestomandat egreencl
eaninginschool
s,haveseennocostr i
ses[29].TheNew
YorkStat
eOf f
iceofGener alServiceshasnothear danycomplaint
sfr
om thestate’
s~750schooldi
stri
ctsabout
thecostofgr
eencl eaner
s.Onl yfourofIll
i
nois’nearl
y900distr
ict
shaverequestedexempt
ionsfr
om greenclean-
i
ngr equi
rementsduet oeconomi chardship.
1.NCES( NationalCent erf orEducat ionSt atistics).2007.Publ icSchoolPr incipal sRepor tonThei rSchoolFaci li
ties:Fal l2005.Januar y2007.
nces.ed. gov/ pubsear ch/ pubsi nf o.asp?pubi d=2007007
2.CARB( Calif
or niaAi rResour cesBoar d) .2004.Envi ronment alHeal thCondi t
ionsi nCal i
forni a’
sPor tableCl assr ooms.November2004,Cal i
forniaDepar t
mentofHeal thServi
ces.
www. ar b.ca.gov/ resear ch/ indoor /pcs/ leg_r pt/leg_r pt .
ht m
3.EWG ( Environment alWor kingGr oup) .2009.Gr eenerSchoolCl eani ngSuppl ies=Fr eshAi r+Heal thi
erKi ds.www. ewg. org/
school cleani ngsupplies/
4.Aki nbamiL.2006.Thest ateofchi ldhoodast hma,Uni tedSt ates,1980- 2005.AdvDat a( 381) :1- 24.
5.EPA( Environment alPr otect i
onAgency) .2009.Ast hmaFact s.www. epa. gov/ ast hma01/ pdf s/asthma_f act_sheet _en. pdf
6.Mazur ekJM,etal .2008.Wor k- relatedast hmai nt heeducat ionalser vicesi ndust r
y:Cal i
forni a,Massachuset t
s,Mi chigan,andNew Jer sey ,1993- 2000.Am JI ndMed51( 1)
:47- 59.
7.Medi na-RamonM,etal .2006.Shor t-termr espi r
at or yef fect sofcl eani ngexposur esi nf emal edomest iccleaner s.EurRespi rJ27( 6) :1196- 1203.
8.Ar ifAA,Del closGL,Ser raC.2009.Occupat ionalExposur esandAst hmaamongNur si ngPr ofessi onals.OccupEnvi ronMed66( 4):274- 278.
9.Ber nst ei
nJA,etal .2009.Eval uat ionofcl eani ngact i
vitiesonr espi rator ysympt omsi nast hmat i
cf emal ehomemaker s.AnnAl l
er gyAst hmaI mmunol102( 1):41- 46.
10.FDA( FoodandDr ugAdmi nistr ation) .2005.Non- Pr escr iptionDr ugsAdvi sor yCommi tteeMeet ing,Oct ober20,2005.Depar tmentofHeal thandHumanSer vices,FoodandDr ugAdmi ni
str
a-
ti
on,Cent erforDr ugEval uat ionandResear ch.p.1- 386.
11.TanL,etal .2002.Useofant imi cr obi alagent si nconsumerpr oduct s.Ar chDer matol138( 8):1082- 1086.
12.Vel dhoenN,etal .2006.Thebact er icidalagentt riclosanmodul atest hyr oidhor mone- associ atedgeneexpr essi onanddi sruptspost embr yonicanur andevel opment .AquatToxicol80( 3):
217-227.
13.GeeRH,etal .2008.Oest rogeni candandr ogeni cact ivityoft r
iclosani nbr eastcancercel ls.JApplToxi col28( 1) :78- 91.
14.Lindst rom A,etal .2002.Occur renceandenvi ronment albehavi oroft hebact erici
det r i
closanandi tsmet hylder ivativei nsur f
acewat er sandi nwast ewater.Envi ronSciTechnol36( 11):
2322-2329.
15.FissEM,Rul eKL,Vi kesl andPJ.2007.For mat i
onofchl or ofor m andot herchl or i
natedbypr oduct sbychl ori
nat ionoft ricl
osan- cont ai ningant ibacterialproduct s.EnvironSciTechnol41( 7):
2387-2394.
16.Cal afatAM,etal .2008.Ur inar yconcent rationsoft riclosani nt heU. S.popul at i
on:2003- 2004.Envi ronHeal thPer spect116( 3):303- 307.
17.Bar ronT,Sut herlandL.1999.Envi r
onment al l
ypr efer abl ej ani t
or ialpr oduct s:I ssuesandoppor tuniti
es.Pol lutPr eventRev9( 4) :17- 25.
18.Gr andj eanP,Landr iganPJ.2006.Devel opment alneur ot oxici t
yofi ndust rialchemi cal s.Lancet368( 9553) :2167- 2178.
19.NTP( NationalToxi col ogyPr ogr am) .2002.10t hRepor tonCar ci nogens.ehp. niehs.ni h.gov/ roc/toc10. html
20.NTP( NationalToxi col ogyPr ogr am) .2000.NTPToxi cologyandCar cinogenesi sStudi es2- But oxyet hanol( CASNO.111- 76-2)i nF344/ N RatsandB6C3F1Mi ce(Inhalat
ionStudies) .Natl
ToxicolPr ogram TechRepSer484:p.1- 290.
21.Nazar offWW,etal .2006.I ndoorAi rChemi stry:Cl eani ngAgent s,OzoneandToxi cAi rCont ami nant s.Prepar edf ort heCal if
or niaAi rResour cesBoar dandt heCal i
for
niaEnvironment alPro-
tect
ionAgency .www. ar b.ca. gov/ resear ch/ abst ract s/01- 336. htm
22.Jaakkol aJJ,Kni ghtTL.2008.Ther oleofexposur et opht hal atesf rom pol yvinylchl or idepr oduct si nthedevel opmentofast hmaandal l
er gi
es:asyst emat i
cr eview andmet a-analysis.Envi-
ronHeal thPer spect116( 7) :845- 853.
23.SwanSH,etal .2005.Decr easei nanogeni taldist anceamongmal ei nf antswi t
hpr enat alpht halateexposur e.Envi ronHeal t
hPer spect113( 8):1056- 1061.
24.Mai nKM,etal .2006.Humanbr eastmi l
kcont ami nat i
onwi thpht hal atesandal t
erationsofendogenousr epr oduct i
vehor monesi ni nf antst hreemont hsofage.Envi ronHealthPer spect
114(2):270- 276.
25.HuangPC,etal .2007.Associ ationsbet weenur inar ypht hal atemonoest er sandt hyr oidhor monesi npr egnantwomen.Hum Repr od22( 10):2715- 2722.
26.BechiN,etal .2006.Est rogen- li
ker esponset op- nonyl phenoli nhumanf irstt ri
mest erpl acent aandBeWochor iocar cinomacel ls.Toxi colSci93( 1):75- 81.
27.Cal afatAM,etal .2005.Ur inar yconcent rationsofbi sphenol Aand4- nonyl phenoli nahumanr eferencepopul ation.Envi ronHeal thPer spect113( 4):391- 395.
28.RAMP( Regi onal Ast hmaManagement&Pr event ion) .2009.Br eat hingEasi er :SchoolDi strictsMaket heSwi tcht oCer t
if
iedGr eenCl eani ngPr oducts.Oakl and,CA.
rampast hma. org/RAMP. Gr eenCl eani ngRepor t
.4. 09.pdf
29. GPI( GreenPur chasi ngI nst itute) ,GSI( Gr eenSchool sI niti
at i
ve) .2009.Fr equent l
yAskedQuest ions( FAQs)Aboutt heCostofCer ti
fi
ed" Gr een"Cl eaner s.

ewg.
org/
school
cl
eani
ngs
uppl
ies