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The EPA does not permit green certification of disinfectants by organizations such as Green Seal (although this may be changing soon), since disinfectants are considered pesticides, and the federal government uses its own separate safety and efficacy criteria.
When disinfection is necessary and a “green” approach is desired, consider a product that does not contain phosphates, highly caustic or acidic pH, added fragrance or dyes, harmful VOCs, or ingredients such as butyl cellusolve or nonylphenol ethoxylate.
You can also green up your cleaning practices by using the right product in the right place at the right time. Disinfectants often are overused, and inappropriately introducing toxic substances into environments is not wise, green, or healthy. It’s akin to using an atomic bomb when a bullet can do the job.
Remember
Disinfectants, used properly and wisely, are designed to protect public health. Given that mandate, in many situations - and especially in homecare, healthcare and other critical scenarios - there is no substitute for disinfectant cleaning.
Green Trends
As the environmental movement continues to gain footing, more and more green products - those designed to be less harmful to people and the environment - are becoming available. Many technologies, old and new, hold promise to make controlling microbes a greener process:
- Hydrogen peroxide in proper formulation and dilution is considered an effective and less toxic sanitizer and/or disinfectant by some public health experts. Some products even make tuberculocidal claims (check for EPA-registration).
- Silver ions are being used with some success.
- Ultraviolet light (UV-C) also holds promise.
- Thymol, derived from the herb thyme, is the active ingredient in some products with germ-killing claims.
Remember
Most microbes are either harmless or beneficial (e.g., they break down waste in the environment), so wiping them out routinely with disinfectant is overkill, and it’s counterproductive. (Maintaining a balanced ecosystem is important.) Ideally, we want to manage microbes rather than directly poison or kill them all.
A growing field of study is bioaugmentation (or bioremediation), which is based on the premise that if you cultivate friendly microbes to make them dominant, they keep the harmful ones under control naturally by limiting the food supply. Taking advantage of nature’s nature like this is a smart approach to cleaning buildings. That is, view indoor environments as ecosystems and mimic natural systems within them.
Protecting the Environment – Chemicals and Resistant Bacteria
The impact of disinfectants on the outdoor environment when they’re washed down the drain and out into the world is a matter under discussion. For example, excess disinfectant in sewage may affect a sewage disposal plant by killing the natural flora.
Do disinfectants create resistant bacteria? One point to consider is that some people confuse disinfectants with antibacterial products (many liquid hand soaps are now labeled antibacterial, for instance), thinking that disinfectants can produce antibiotic-resistant bacteria as antibiotic medication has done in many cases. However, antibacterial ingredients work by a different mechanism (e.g., inhibiting reproduction) from disinfectants, and some scientists and scientific studies claim they leave open the possibility of creating resistant bacteria.
Disinfectants, on the other hand, generally act on many components of microorganisms at once, so “easy” mutations of single components don’t produce resistance. In other words, they do more thorough damage; pretty much nothing survives to develop resistance. Therefore, you see no examples of disinfectants producing resistant microbes during the many decades people have been using them. As a side point, people might use fewer antibacterial products if they realized they affect only bacteria and are useless against cold or flu bugs, which are viruses.
Remember
Antibacterial and disinfecting products have drawbacks, but they may have their place. For example, if you’re in contact with an immunocompromised or infirm person, sometimes using an antibacterial soap for washing hands may be warranted and useful. Or, if you need to tackle an especially virulent pathogen, and other methods are not easily available, it’s perhaps time to use an appropriate chemical disinfectant.
Adapted with permission from Infection Control for Dummies by IEHA President J. Darrel Hicks, R.E.H.
