Green Cleaning Eight Step Guideline for a Healthy Environment

By now just about everyone has not only heard of green cleaning or going green, but have been involved in one way or another. Green cleaning is definitely a way to help establish a healthy environment for everyone. In the janitorial and cleaning industry one way to make a difference is in choosing environmentally responsible products which can make a huge difference in your spending budget.

Develop + Plan + Execute = Green Cleaning Success

The caring and cleaning of a commercial or institutional facility is a huge task. Developing and implementing a green cleaning program that will effectively protect the occupant's health while minimizing the cleaning's impact on the environment is equally significant.

By following these eight guidelines you will find that implementing your green cleaning program will be much easier and much more successful.

1. Put health and the environment first: This should be the fundamental focus for any green cleaning program. Protect the health of workers and building occupants as well as the environment.

2. Review current products and practices: If your current cleaning products are not green, then consider changing. Using the right product in the correct manor is crucial to making your plan work.

3. Use green cleaning products: These products are designed to follow the first guideline; health and environment first.

4. Use green equipment and supplies: Equipment such as vacuum cleaners that use HEPA filters and are certified by the CRI are considered green. Supplies that are manufactured to reduce environmental impact are also green. Look for labels indicating such.

5. Decrease entry of dirt and pollutants: Dirt walks in your front door. Most all of the dirt that enters into a building comes in through the doors on the shoes of people. Using mats to keep it out will definitely make for a healthier environment.

6. Disinfect only in areas that require it: Do not over disinfect. There is no need to disinfect your entry way floors as an example. Using fewer chemicals helps keep a healthy environment.

7. Use green paper and plastic products: Using green paper such as toilet tissue and paper towels is a great way to help reduce the pollutants expelled into the atmosphere during manufacturing process. Plastics can be reused in many cases and then recycled.

8. Education, training and enforcement: This last tip will be the one that can have the biggest effect on a healthy environment. If all of the other tips and processes are not followed, then there is not a result of improvement and thus a healthy environment.