Before I delve into the specifics of this green challenge I have found it fruitful to look at WHY I should investigate any given task.  This week’s green challenge is to look into the environmental impact of the cleaners most of us have in our cupboards.  The biggest reason this is important, and seems most obvious to me, is all of the toxic chemicals that are in cleaners.

A quick look at the ingredient lists of most cleaners reveal a long list of stuff that does not sound good for you.  Typically, there are poison labels and a label of what you should do if you ingest these chemicals.  These are not the kind of things a normal person would consider healthy. Most of us (or at least those of us that are alive) do not eat these things, but yet it seems perfectly normal to spray or wipe them all over our house?  I might be crazy, but it does not seem like a good idea to spread a thin layer of poison over everything we encounter through the day.

So the layer of poison all over our house does not sound disgusting enough?  What about all of the cleaner waste that ends up going down our toilets, sinks and in the garbage? Not only the packaging of these items, but also the chemicals themselves.  Although I do not know enough about it yet, I imagine that millions of households sending poison down the sink has some kind of bad impact on our potable water and our landfills. 

The way I see it, we need to change out the cleaning chemicals in our household for a few different reasons.  First, and most important, it seems to be the healthy thing to do.  The thought of poisons covering everything in my house disturbs me.  Also, these chemicals are ending up in the waste system via our garbage and down our drains.  Please let me know if you have any good information for me in the comment area below.