Green cleaning is about more than using a product with environment-friendly claims, though. It’s about cleaning in a way that protects employee health without harming the environment. And as the cleaning industry moves from using green products to green processes, the question is no longer whether to be green, it’s how to be green. The answer is not always easy to come by, either. With concerns about ‘green washing’ claims and science-based criteria for standards, it’s getting harder to figure out how to get there.

Take Green Seal, for instance. The third-party certifier of green products is having to defend its recent revision of GS-37, the standard for industrial and institutional cleaning products. First published in 2000, the standard has become the single most-referenced environmental standard in the cleaning industry.

However, Green Seal is losing support for the standard, with organizations withdrawing from and criticizing the revision, questioning Green Seal’s process. See more on this in the Industry News section of this magazine. We won’t come down on either side of this issue, leaving it to the marketplace to determine the success of the revised standard, but it’s clear that many manufacturers will be looking elsewhere for the green certifications.

We do recognize the challenge facility managers face in choosing the right products to meet their needs, and think they should evaluate before use all the cleaning products they use to determine impact on the indoor environment and worker safety. Chemicals and disposables should be analyzed for harmful ingredients and recycled content, while equipment should have the ability to capture and contain soil.

In this difficult economy, many are saying that the key to a prosperous future is sustainability. “The triple bottom line – environmental responsibility, economic prosperity and social equity – is imperative as we move forward,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council. “As research comes in from diverse sources examining the interest in green buildings among a wide range of Americans, the numbers keep painting the same picture: The future of our built environment clearly centers on energy efficiency, water reduction, systems that encourage cleaner indoor air, the use of recycled and more sustainably developed materials, and communities that coexist with their environments.”

Following through with a green cleaning initiative requires significant planning and operational commitment on behalf of facility staff and cleaning service providers. Despite the extra effort up front, the payoffs are clear: more efficient material use, reduced waste, labor and energy efficiencies, and the protection of the indoor and outdoor environment.

After green cleaning products, the second key component to a facility-wide green cleaning program is the use of best practices and appropriate cleaning frequency.

The challenge here is to ensure that the facility manager is committed to a functional green cleaning program that advances continual improvement. Rathey emphasizes the importance of planning to any successful green cleaning