Green Janitorial Products and Services
On average, Americans spend about 90 percent of their days indoors. EPA studies indicate that human exposure to air pollutants indoors can be 2-5 times, and occasionally up to 100 times, higher than outdoor levels.

Poor quality indoor air can produce health effects ranging from headaches and dry eyes to nausea, dizziness, and fatigue. We all want to work in an office environment that is comfortable, clean and safe. An important part of ensuring good indoor air quality in Federal facilities is choosing cleaning products that have a reduced impact on human health and the environment. We call these green cleaners.

Today, more than ever, Federal facility managers are working with the acquisition community to develop contracts that encourage the use of cleaning agents with a reduced impact on the environment.

This part of our web site is designed for Federal facility managers, acquisition staff, health and safety officers and others who are considering the use of green cleaners. On this web site, you will find contract language, implementation guidance, case studies, links to products and services that have successfully been used by others, and expert contacts.

Many Federal agencies have made the switch from the use of conventional cleaning products to green cleaning products and services. To learn more about these pioneers in greening janitorial services contract, visit the following web sites:

Department of the Interior Greening the Janitorial Business
http://greeninginterior.doi.gov/sustain/ch5.html

Cleaning Products Pilot Project (co-sponsored by EPA and GSA)
http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/epp/pubs/cleaner.pdf

Why convert to green cleaners?

• Helps you meet green purchasing mandates
• Promotes a healthier working environment
• Improves safety for janitorial workers
• Reduces your agency's environmental footprint
• Green purchasing is an important element of an Environmental Management System (EMS) now required for all federal facilities
• Helps create a more sizable market for cost effective high performance green products
• Helps position your agency as a leader in the use of sustainable business practices

Where can I find a janitorial service provider that uses green products?
NISH, formerly the National Industries for the Severely Handicapped, is the national nonprofit agency designated by the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind Or Severely Disabled to provide technical assistance to Community Rehabilitation Programs (CRPs) interested in obtaining Federal contracts under the AbilityOne Program (formerly called Javits-Wagner-O'Day (JWOD) Program). By buying green products and services from the blind and severely disabled, you can satisfy the requirement to purchase green products and help create jobs for the blind and disabled. The National Industries for the Blind now offers green cleaning products, and NISH organizations offer janitorial services using greening cleaning products. In 2002, the AbilityOne Program partnered with one of the nation's premier producers of green cleaning chemicals, Rochester Midland, in order to meet customers' increasing demand for high-quality, non-toxic, and safe janitorial cleaning supplies.

Where can I get a list of cleaning products that have been certified as green?
The Responsible Purchasing Network, a program staffed and managed by The Center for a New American Dream, keeps a Purchasing Guide that lists the products that meet the Green Seal GS-37 standard (see below for more information on the purchasing criteria).  Each Responsible Purchasing Network Purchasing Guide reviews the standards and certifications available for identifying social and environmental product/service attributes.  The products database is searchable by key word and results can be sorted by:

• Type of Product
• Manufacturer
• Product/Model
• Standard

GS-37 is applicable for all purpose, bathroom, and glass cleaners. It establishes criteria for 13 factors, such as toxic compounds, carcinogens, skin and eye irritants, and combustibility. Green Seal has certified more than 5 dozen products to the GS-37 standard.

In addition, Green Seal published a "Choose Green Report" on floor finishes and strippers. The report identifies toxic substances, VOC content, zinc content, pH, and other criteria for identifying environmentally preferable floor finishes and strippers and recommends 9 floor finishes and 6 floor strippers. On November 12, 2004, Green Seal released GS-40, a standard for floor care products (finishes and strippers) for institutional use. As with the "Choose Green Report," the standard identifies toxic substances, pH, zinc and other heavy metal content, ozone depleter content, and other criteria for identifying environmentally preferable floor finishes and strippers. The standard defines a floor finish as "as any product designed to polish, protect, or enhance floor surfaces by leaving a protective wax, polymer, or resin coating that is designed to be periodically removed." The standard defines a floor stripper as "a product designed to remove floor finish through breakdown of the polymers, or by dissolving or emulsifying the finish, polish or wax." Green Seal believes that these two types of products need to be designed to work together and, therefore, there needs to be compatibility between the two. At this time, Green Seal has not yet listed any products that have been certified under this new standard.

The Fall 2003 issue of Closing the Circle News also provides source information.

The Center for a New American Dream is keeping an updated list of products that meet the nationwide purchasing criteria the Center's multi-stakeholder group developed based on the Green Seal GS-37 standard (see below for more information on the purchasing criteria). The list of "approved" products is broken into four sections:

1. products that have been approved by someone using the purchasing criteria (e.g., Massachusetts, City of Santa Monica);
2. products certified by Green Seal;
3. products certified by others as meeting the Center's purchasing criteria; and
4. products self-certified by a company who provides all of the information necessary to prove it meets the purchasing criteria.

Are there examples of solicitation or contract language for custodial contracts?
Fairchild Air Force Base developed a draft "Green" Statement of Work for custodial services. The Statement of Work addresses Environmental Management and Green Procurement in Paragraphs 4.7 and 4.7.1.

Where can I learn more about green cleaners?
EPA's Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Program provides a wealth of information on the Federal government's "Cleaning Products Pilot Project" and features three interactive purchasing decision wizards for use by contracting officers and contracting officer technical representatives.

INFORM, Inc. is a national non-profit organization that identifies practical ways of living and doing business that are environmentally sustainable. INFORM's August 2002 report, Cleaning for Health, is a one-stop guide to green cleaning products and methods that have been effectively used in office buildings, schools, hospitals, and other facilities in the United States and Canada. It describes pioneering product evaluation programs and lists the brands that were chosen based on environmental and performance criteria. It also provides a model specification, as well as manufacturer contacts and other resources for those who want to develop a safer cleaning program for their buildings.

The Center for a New American Dream (CNAD) , along with its Responsible Purchasing Network (RPN), is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping Americans consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life and promote social justice. CNAD established a Procurement Strategies Program in 1998 to respond to the demand for more environmentally preferable goods and services by helping state and local government incorporate environmental considerations into purchasing decisions. One result is a multi-organization agreement on green cleaning criteria. The RPN, founded in 2005 and staffed by the CNAD, is a national network of procurement-related professionals dedicated to socially responsible and environmentally sustainable purchasing.

The EPA/GSA Cleaning Products Pilot Project (CPPP) was established in 1993 as a cooperative interagency effort between GSA and EPA. The effort sought to identify environmentally preferable cleaning products in five product categories: daily use products, floor care systems, carpet cleaners, sweeping compounds, and de-icing compounds. CPPP was the first pilot project designed and conducted to identify and compare environmentally preferable products. As such, it provides valuable "lessons learned" for managers of other green purchasing pilot efforts.

Interested in Power Point presentations providing an overview of green cleaning? Check these out:
OFEE Presentation on the Federal Market and Green Purchasing Presented to the International Sanitary Supply Association Conference on Green Cleaning

http://www.newdream.org/procure/confcalls/cleaning.html

http://www.newmoa.org/Newmoa/htdocs/prevention/greengovconf/presentations/Petruzzi.pdf

Greening the Government Conference

The "Green" Cleaning Opportunity

North American Green Purchasing Conference

DOI Green Cleaners Training