Issues > March/April 2007 (#119) > Cleaner and Greener Laundry

Cleaner and Greener Laundry

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Solid Waste

The plastic bottles used to package cleaning products pose another environmental problem by contributing to the mounds of solid waste that must be landfilled, incinerated or, in not enough cases, recycled. Most cleaners are bottled in high-density polyethylene (HDPE, #2) or polyethylene terephthalate (PETE, #1) which are accepted for recycling in a growing number of communities. However, some are bottled in polyvinyl chloride (PVC, #3). PVC, otherwise known as vinyl, is made from cancer-causing chemicals such as vinyl chloride, and it forms dioxin, a potent carcinogen, as a byproduct during production and incineration. As a final insult, most sanitation departments do not accept PVC for recycling; less than one percent of all PVC is recycled each year.

As a general environmental precaution, most laundry detergents, fabric softeners and stain removers are made from petroleum, contributing to the depletion of this non-renewable resource and increasing our nation's dependence on imported oil.

Dryer sheets are not made of readily biodegradable materials and pile up in landfills. Some companies have introduced re-usable products that will soften clothes and eliminate static cling; among the most advertised are dryer balls made from PVC, which as stated earlier, releases cancer-causing chemicals during production. Another alternative are so-called "static eliminator" dryer sheets that are made from polyester, itself made of non-renewable petroleum.

Energy

Laundry equipment consumes vast amounts of energy and water to clean a load of clothing. On average, washers are the second-largest water user in the home, consuming 40 gallons per load. According to the Energy Information Administration, dryers annually consume 1,079 kilowatt hours per household of energy, the production of which contributes up to 2,224 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2), a greenhouse gas that adds to global warming.

What To Look For

Unlike other household cleaning products, laundry products can't usually be replaced by homemade alternatives. However, by scrutinizing labels, you can decipher the language companies use to define their ingredients.

Although most laundry product labels don't list specific ingredients, you can learn something about a product's hazards by a signal word, such as "Danger," "Warning" or "Caution," which appears on every label and provides some indication of a product's toxicity. Products labeled "Danger" or "Poison" are typically most hazardous, because they contain ingredients that could explode or, if used improperly, cause death. Those bearing a "Warning" label are moderately hazardous, meaning that if ingested the product could cause serious health problems but not death. Formulas with a "Caution" label are considered slightly toxic, in that they can cause mild to severe irritation of the skin, eyes or respiratory tract if inhaled or exposed to the skin but probably won't cause severe health problems if ingested (although they may cause nausea or diarrhea). Because there are very few effective cleaning ingredients available, even some least-toxic detergents will bear the "Caution" label, but if you can find them, choose products that require none of the signal words above on their label.

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