Everyone in Rockford Michigan is now aware of the possible dangers with the presence of certain chemicals in our potable water, and concerned citizens have every right to be alarmed. It’s a given fact that most of us want a clean environment but in the same token, we all want to be physically healthy as well. This is more than just a cliché because studies have shown that while chemicals may be effective for their intended purpose they also pose a threat to the health of every living being. Some of this danger is less obvious than the Center for Disease Control citing that accidental household poisonings affect 300 children in the US every day (Source: The Organically Clean Home). While we don’t want to sound like alarmists, we do acknowledge our role as responsible stewards in the community and in the industry by making sure our employees and customers are safe from harmful chemicals.
In researching for a future housecleaning program I began by reading the breakthrough book “Naturally Clean”. Naturally Clean was published by Seventh Generation Inc., the leading manufacturer of Green Cleaning agents in the USA. Upon finishing Naturally Clean I continued my investigation by reading three other contemporary bestselling books on the topic. Further, my own book, Cleaning for Profit, drew both on my former education and field experience in building Scott’s Janitorial in Ludington. Based on those merits I strongly endorse the principles of precaution and transparency in choosing cleaning agents for application in our homes.
When it comes to chemical regulations, we here in the United States have founded most of our decision making on an advesarial legal system which states that an activity is innocent until proven guilty. In this school of regulatory thought, the use of chemicals is permissible to do until someone can prove that a certain chemical is harmful in some way. Unfortunately, in many cases, says Jeffery Hollender, "where proof has been established, it comes at the cost of prematurely ending human life".
Seventh Generation Inc. pioneered an approach to R & D of a product line beginning in 1989 that took a long look at chronic health issues and the impact of chemicals on our environment before introducing them to our homes, our air, food and water supplies. While some other companies beside Seventh Generation Inc, have followed this same course and developed complete lines of healthier products, by large many of the branded products sold in big box stores today fall short of such integrity and commitment to consumer protection. While material data safety sheets tell us about immediate or “acute toxicity”, of the chemicals listed, sometimes ingredients are omitted entirely and when they are shared, they do not consider the accumulation in our bodies over time and the long term consquences of said exposure.
When we read labels, printed advertisements and watch television we are lulled into believing that the products we use in our homes are free of serious dangers. We assume that everything that we buy has been tested for safety by unbiased scientists who have regulatory guidelines designed to protect us. Unfortunately, the truth is quite a different thing. The evidence pointing to the risks associated with synthetic chemicals is voluminous and a strong case has been made concerning a clear and present danger to public health. We Americans are the champions of free enterprise, a system whose bedrock includes getting new products to market with expedience resulting in an economy that is truly the envy of the world. Unfortunately, some trade-offs are inevitable with such enormous prosperity. In thinking about the second order effects of chemicals there are known, unknown, and unknowable elements of risk involved.
The Environmental Working Group claims that one in three people will face cancer in our lifetimes, major increase in COPD, blood, liver, kidney, hormonal, and heart disease that directly correlate to the increase of synthetic chemicals and the body burden they represent (Source: www.ewg.org). Medical journals reveal that these conditions have increased geometrically in direct correlation along with the synthesis of petroleum-based chemicals. There are over 80,000 different chemical compounds now in use in the United States. The National Toxicology Program has tested only 5% of those chemicals for carcinogenicity. In those studies researchers estimate that there are 4,000 to 8,000 chemicals presently accumulating in our bodies that are likely to trigger cancer, and many other diseases we face. Many of those chemicals are key ingredients in the products used in housecleaning. While some manufacturers, like Seventh Generation Inc, have taken action to develop much safer alternative cleaning agents, others have chosen to mask the risks of chemicals in a phenomenon known as “greenwashing” their products, to appear safer when they are not.
Happy Window Cleaning is developing a training program for legitimately green cleaning called “Happy, Healthy and Nontoxic Cleaning System” for the benefit our customers and employees. The employee training course attempts to outline the full range of dangerous chemicals on the market and why they are forbidden for our use, as well as the specific cleaning agents that we’ve approved for use. Transparency is observed by our commitment to list all ingredients for all the products we use. Our house cleaning technicians will attend our seminar and be required to pass a proficiency exam to earn their company certification.
Current Happy Window Cleaning Customers who are interested in learning about this topic may audit our certification program for free (Note: For proprietary reasons, this offer is limited to current customers (or their house cleaners) only. No one will be pressured into subscribing to our house cleaning services. All they have to do is contact our office for the password to our employee training page where all will be revealed