by Barbara Allen

Most of us would be surprised to learn that we are harboring hazardous waste in our homes – in our bathroom and kitchen cabinets! We think only industries create this awful stuff. And yet household hazardous waste causes the majority of the pollution problems in our landfills. Because these products are so common we don’t think of them as HAZARDOUS WASTE and so we treat them like the rest of our household trash. We pour them on the ground, and down our drains and send them to the landfills mixed with the rest of our trash. But these products can damage our septic systems and waste water treatment facilities, our ground water, our lakes and rivers and if they are accidentally mixed they can become more dangerous substances that can injure garbage collectors and landfill workers. Most are poisonous to humans and wildlife and cause cancer, birth defects and other serious medical problems. Many of the cleaning products we use on a daily basis are just as toxic as their industrial cousins.

The average household contains three to ten gallons of this hazardous material! Once we buy it we are responsible for it. So it seems we must all become more aware of what we are buying. Look for warning labels and precautions as well as hazard symbols.

Ross Coward says in Greening Your House, “Pesticides used in some weed killers, head lice preparations and wood preservatives are carcinogenic in animals. Some chemicals, like artificial musk in bath products or phalates in plastics are hormone-disrupters. Most of these bio-accumulate, which means that they are stored in body fat. Long-term effects and interaction with other stored chemicals are unknown. They may be responsible for falling sperm count in humans, sexual mutation in fish and genital abnormalities in other species. Breast milk appears to have high concentrations of such chemicals.”

Here is a partial list of products commonly found in our homes:

Cleaning Products: aerosols, bathroom cleaners, drain cleaners, chlorine bleach, solvents, spot removers, toilet cleaners, oven cleaners

Automotive Supplies: car waxes, starting fluids, repair products, batteries, brake fluid, motor oil

Hobby Products: glues, paints, stains, finishes, contact cement

Personal Products/Pharmaceuticals: nail polish and remover, prescription drugs

Pesticides: weed and pest killers, lawn chemicals

Home Environment Supplies: caulks, stains, paints, varnish, thinner, chemical strippers, fire extinguishers, flea collars and sprays, herbicides, insect repellents, insecticides, kerosene, lighter fluid, lye, mothballs, old propane tanks, pool chemicals

The Good News:

Many of these products come in environmentally friendly forms or you can make your own natural, non-toxic alternative. Some are more expensive but many are very much less expensive, especially the home-made products. Money should not be an object here anyway, since we are talking about our children’s and pet’s health, and the health of the whole eco-system. We do what we can to support legislation that will force industries to clean up their acts. Now it’s time to clean up our own.
 

Here are some very simple recipes for natural products:

Sink, tub, and tile: Use baking soda and hot water.

Dishes: Use a plain liquid soap to hand wash dishes.

For automatic dishwashers: use equal parts baking soda and borax.

Deodorant: Baking soda also makes a wonderful deodorant that’s natural and cheap! Just pat it under your arms after your shower and it lasts all day!

Body Powder: Cornstarch mixed with dried herbs such as lavender and rosemary, make a great body powder for hot sticky weather. If you have an empty powder box and puff you can refill it with this natural mix.

Carpet deodorizer: again baking soda comes to the rescue. Sprinkle generously on dry carpet, let sit overnight and vacuum. This is not dangerous to children and pets as many other products are.

Furniture polish: Mix 1 teaspoon of lemon juice in 1 pint of mineral or vegetable oil, and wipe furniture.

Borax is one of those wonderful all-purpose household products that no home should be without. Baking soda and borax are a great team and could replace many expensive toxic cleaners and laundry products. They are among my favorites. I feel good when I use these because I know I not damaging the environment or my family or pets when I do.

For many years our family has used a concentrated all-purpose cleaner made from citrus extracts and other biodegradable materials. It’s a solvent when used full strength and when you put a tiny bit in a spray bottle filled with water it takes care of most indoor and outdoor cleaning jobs. I keep a spray bottle in the kitchen and each bathroom. It cleans ovens when used at a stronger concentration. It’s the only cleaner I have besides borax and baking soda. And it makes everything you use it on smell like oranges! So I know from personal experience that an environmentally friendly cleaner can be as effective as the dangerous, toxic brands.

When you are looking for products for your home become a label reader. Try to make sure they are 100 percent natural or natural fibers (sponges), biodegradable, phosphate-free, chlorine-free, vegetable oil base, unscented, dye-free, concentrated.

You can get water-based paints and stains and solvents now that are environmentally friendly. In fact it’s becoming easier all the time to find eco-friendly alternatives to most of the products in the hazard list above. We just have to remember to look for them and ask for them.

And when you are ready to get rid of any of the products listed in that infamous hazard list call the local landfill and ask them how to deal with them. Please don’t throw them in the trash! One good alternative is the Household Hazardous Waste Collection. This year’s will be held on March 9th at the Fair Grounds in DeFuniak Springs and in South Walton county at the Mosquito Control Center. Let’s work toward a day when we no longer have to ask our government to deal with our hazardous household materials, because we no longer have any! We just need to remember that we have a choice.

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This column comes to you courtesy of the Environmental Concerns Group of the DeFuniak Springs Garden Club.