Talking Stick - September/October 2008 - 22

Facilities dining halls, where a table displayed INFORM assessed the environmental presents green alternatives. INFORM common personal care products and their friendliness of Middlebury’s cleaning publishes a best-practices document and green counterparts. During the college’s products and provided information about has presented the results of multiple weekly speaker series, INFORM staff green alternatives. The custodial staff studies in a report titled “Cleaning for presented a program on “Cleaning for looked critically at their own practices, Health: Products and Practices for a Health,” which was attended by over 100 especially their impact on indoor air Safer Indoor Environment.” The report students. quality. Byrne comments, “We then spent explains the health effects of indoor a year considering and testing alternative pollutants, describes cleaning methods In addition to using green cleaning products and consulted with other that not only reduce dust and germs but products, facility professionals have taken also the need for other measures to harsh chemicals, improve indoor recommends air quality. Greg specific green Dirks, custodial cleaning products, manager at the and includes an University of entire chapter on Iowa in Iowa NUMEROUS SCIENTIFIC STUDIES have documented the health the health and City, tries to avoid effects associated with various cleaning products. The following safety concerns of using chemicals studies heed recommendations for product-usage that can facilities staff. or aerosols unnecessarily: “If One institution cleaning products that has utilized Indoor Air Chemistry: Cleaning Agents, Ozone and Toxic and practices this information Air Contaminants (2006) presents the results of research into are effective, is Middlebury two common classes of ingredients in cleaning products and there is no need College in air fresheners, finding that when these products are used for deodorizers. Vermont. Jack indoors, occupants are exposed to airborne chemicals that They just cover Byrne, campus lead to potential health risks. The full text can be found at up odors that sustainability www.arb.ca.gov/research/apr/past/01-336_a.pdf. shouldn’t exist.” coordinator, Air quality explains the The Use of Household Cleaning Sprays and Adult Asthma can often be impetus for this (2007) found that the use of cleaning sprays at least improved by decision: “In 1995 weekly was associated with asthma symptoms simply changing the Middlebury in adults. The full text can be found at cleaning College Board of ajrccm.atsjournals.org/cgi/reprint/176/8/735. practices. Trustees adopted Traditional a philosophy dusting, for directing the example, college to be requires spraying mindful of the a cleaning environment product or an oil for future onto a surface generations. schools who used the green products to to pick up dirt and dust; without the This sent a strong message that determine which ones were the most spray product, dust particles float up sustainable practices should happen in effective, easy to use, and affordable.” into the air, compromising its quality. all departments across campus.” With Using microfiber dust cloths can solve a strong recycling program already in The green effort didn’t end with the this problem. Microfiber is a synthetic place, Middlebury’s Department of staff, as Byrne proudly explains: “We filament split into 16 pieces with Environmental Affairs and Office of engaged students to raise awareness spaces between them that trap dirt and Facilities Services started to evaluate about products they were using in their other particles using static electricity its cleaning program, based on its daily lives.” A survey was developed and (magicmicrocloth.com). Microfiber mops impact on air quality and on personnel. distributed to students at the college’s significantly reduce health concerns for your facilities staff. 22 Talking Stick

http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/apr/past/01-336_a.pdf http://ajrccm.atsjournals.org/cgi/reprint/176/8/735 http://magicmicrocloth.com

Talking Stick - September/October 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Talking Stick - September/October 2008