Clean While Staying Green

The Palisadian-Post has partnered with locally founded environmental organization Resilient Palisades to deliver a “green tip” to our readers in each newspaper. This edition’s tip was written by Nika Nazarizadeh.

A simple way to be more environmentally conscious in our everyday lives is to consider what cleaning products we’re using around the house. With a wide range of products like dishwashing liquid and window cleaner, there are a plethora of green alternatives for keeping both your home and the environment clean.

An easy way to stay green is to research a brand prior to purchasing from them. Knowing that a brand is eco-friendly makes it easier to stay green and lets you know that you can trust the brand for other products as well.

If it feels intimidating to investigate which cleaning supplies are effective, eco-friendly and budget-friendly, the EPA offers some help. The EPA places “ecolabel” certifications on brands that qualify as “eco-friendly.”

Some products include Clorax’s all-purpose Compostable Cleaning Wipes, Tide’s Free and Gentle liquid laundry detergent and Boulder Clean’s Valencia Orange Dish Soap.

My family’s favorite ecolabel brand is Seventh Generation. We purchase everything from dishwasher detergent to laundry detergent from the brand.

What separates ecolabel brands from non-environmentally friendly competitors? It all comes down to chemicals. Most cleaning supply companies flooding the shelves at grocery stores are filled with chemicals like chlorine, phosphates and nitrates that are bad for the environment.

A secondary, but nonetheless important, consideration is packaging. Non-environmental brands come in packaging that often cannot be recycled. In contrast, ecolabel products often come in compostable packaging or are packaged in an environmentally conscious manner.

Take action today by looking at the ingredient list of your current cleaning products. Do they have harmful chemicals? If so, venture off into the grocery store (or online) to find a new and clean alternative, and live a cleaner lifestyle.