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January/February 2009 |
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Matters HomeSDA Increases Its Focus on Sustainability Issues |
A greener future for Cleaning Matters
In our search for a greener world, new terms have emerged to give a common vocabulary to this movement.
Sustainability, as defined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), means “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Good sustainable practices integrate three closely interlinked elements: the environment, the economy and the social system.
One area linked to the environmental aspect of sustainability that has received a lot of attention is reducing our carbon footprint. According to the website www.carbonfootprint.com, a carbon footprint is a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment, and in particular climate change. It relates to the amount of greenhouse gases produced in our day-to-day lives through burning fossil fuels for electricity, heating, transportation, etc. Each of us has a carbon footprint that can be divided into two categories.
- Our primary carbon footprint includes direct emissions from domestic energy use, such as using a dishwasher, washing machine, clothes dryer, air conditioner, etc., as well as daily transportation issues.
- Our secondary carbon footprint is a result of our buying habits. For example, do we buy when we could reuse? Do we pay attention to how much packaging the product has? How far did the product have to travel to get to us? Are we conscious of recycling whenever and wherever we can?
In future issues of Cleaning Matters, The Soap and Detergent Association will be providing information to help consumers better understand sustainability issues that impact families on a daily basis. We’ll explore ways we can all work together to reduce our carbon footprint and talk about what SDA and its member companies are doing in the areas of sustainability and product stewardship. This focus will supplement material found at www.cleaning101.com/sustainability, an SDA Web page that communicates the sustainable development activities of SDA and its member companies.
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