Green Cleaning in Schools:

1

Green Cleaning in Schools What you need to
know about Green Cleaning and IPM
Lockport Township High School East Campus
2
Why Green Cleaning!

• Frequently Asked Questions
• Why does it matter what cleaning products I use?
• I have cleaned my school for 25-years with
  basically the same products and now I have to use
  something else?
• Green cleaners do not work as well as traditional
  cleaning products.
• Are traditional cleaning products really
  dangerous?

3
The Invisible Danger

• Did you Know
• According to the American Cancer Society, prior
  to the 20th century, only 1 out of 8,000 people
  in the United States were stricken with cancer.
  Since the Industrial Revolution the incidence of
  cancer has increased to a startling 1 out of 3
  people.
• The EPA has determined the toxic cleaning
  chemicals found in common household cleaners,
  are three times more likely to cause cancer than
  are other air pollutants.
• Since World War II, we have developed more than
  80,000 chemicals for use in cleaners, pesticides,
  plastics, personal care products, industrial
  products and other modern day conveniences. We
  know very little about the effect of these
  chemicals on a child's development and many of
  these chemicals have never been tested.

4
Asthma Epidemic

• Clearly Something is Going On
• Asthma is the leading cause of school absenteeism
  accounting for over 14 million missed days per
  year (doubled in last 20 years)
• 9 million asthmatic children under the age of 18,
  one out of every 13 children have asthma
• Asthma for children under the age of 5 have
  increased by 160 over the past 20 years
• The CDC and EPA have called childhood asthma an
  epidemic
• Good Indoor Air Quality Can Improve Health

5
Environmental Triggers Can Be Controlled

• Asthma and Allergy Triggers (Irritants)
• Dust
• Dust Mites
• Insect Parts and Waste
• VOCs
• Pesticides
• Chemicals-Toxins
• Mold
• Pollen

6
How Do I Make Improvements

• Indoor Air Quality can be improved by
• Reducing the amount of irritants in the classroom
• Providing ample fresh air and proper air exchange
• Maximizing the economizer mode
• Remove unnecessary chemicals and products
• Monitoring CO2 levels
• Making a conscience effort to improve our IAQ

7
Operate to Improve Health

• What We Did First
• Operating Efficiently, but are we Operating
  Healthy?
• Decided to Test the Carbon Dioxide CO2 Levels
• Purchased a Portable CO2 Sensor Data Logger
• Started Monitoring CO2 Levels in Every Classroom
• Followed ASHRAE Guideline of 1,000 ppm
• Found 30 of Rooms had High CO2 Readings
• Checked OA Dampers/Filters/Mechanical System

8
Operate to Improve Health

• What we Found
• Dirty filters have biggest negative impact on CO2
  
• Proper supply/exhaust balance is important
• First year of program we tested every classroom
• Opened OA minimum position setting to 40 in
  certain classrooms to keep CO2 ppm under 1,000
• Now we test 50 of classrooms each year (7
  failure rate)
• Testing helps keep HVAC in good condition

9
Results of CO2 TestThis is what happens when
books are stacked on the unit ventilator
10
Results of CO2 TestRemoved Books Off Unit
Ventilator
11
Results of CO2 TestExample of a Room with a
Dirty Filter
12
Indoor Air Quality Program Example of Same
Room with a Clean Filter
13
Other Strategies

• MERV Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value
• MERV is rated from 1 to 16.
• MERV 5 collects 35 of 3.0 micron particles
• MERV 11 collects 80 of 3.0 micron particles
• We changed are AHU filters from MERV 5 to MERV 11
  (adds one extra filter change a year)
• Minimize the dust particles and irritants from
  the classroom

14
What is Green Cleaning?

• Green Cleaning is a Concept
• The Main Purpose is to Clean to Protect Health
• By Using Environmentally Preferable Products and
  Techniques that Protect Health and the
  Environment
• Must be as Effective as Traditional Cleaning
  Products
• Comparative Standard
• Green Cleaning Reduces the Amount of Chemicals
  Used in Cleaning by Practicing Best Methods

15
What to do first?

• Educate Yourself on the Subject by
• 1. Websites
• healthyschoolcampaign.org
• greenseal.org
• epa.gov/dfe
• usgbc.org
• http//www.epa.gov/iaq/schools/ (Tools for
  Schools
• 2. Custodial Supply Houses
• Provide Training and Product Assistance
• 3. Professional Organizations
• IASB/IASA/IASBO

16
Clean to Protect Health

• Getting Started
• Choose a Standard to Follow
• Cleaning Supplies Audit
• Began with one product, a GS floor cleaner
• Slowly started to replace traditional products
• Realized you do not need a heavy duty industrial
  cleaner to take a pencil mark off a desk
• Maximize the Use of Healthier Alternatives

17
Green Seal Products

• Bathroom Cleaner and Scale Remover
• Restrooms and Locker Rooms
• Multi-Purpose Cleaner
• Accelerated Hydrogen Peroxide
• Neutral Floor Cleaner
• Auto Scrubber/Mop Bucket
• Window and Glass Cleaner
• No Ammonia

18
Green Seal Products

• Other Green Seal Products We Use
• We Discovered an Excellent GS Floor Stripper that
  Removes Wax as well as the Non GS Products we
  Used in the Past
• Green Seal Certified Wax (jury is still out)
• GS Hand Cleaner Foam Type
• GS Neutral Cleaner for Carpet Extractor

19
Green Cleaning Best Practices

• Easy to Implement
• Use HEPA Filters on all Vacuum Cleaners certified
  by the Rug Carpet Institute Green Label program
• Backpack Vacuums (removes dust, just doesnt
  push it around)
• Ample High Quality Entrance Mats (Keep them
  Clean)
• Minimize Deodorizers/Air Fresheners/Aerosols
• Battery Powered Burnisher/Vacuum Attachment
• 9.4 mil. sheets of paper per year (53,000 per
  school day)
• Recycling Program (2 tons a month on average)

20
Best Practices

• J-Carts all have the same four GS products
• Stop purchasing specialty cleaning products
• Proper training is vital to programs success
• Concentrate on High Touch Areas
• Remove Dust Just Dont Move it Around
• Minimize Cross Contamination (CC)
• Important Each custodian must have a large
  supply of clean cloths, dust mops wet mops to
  minimize CC. You must keep all dust mops, wet
  mops and cleaning cloths fresh and clean at all
  times. This is a very important point often
  overlooked
• Application Chart in Every Janitor Closet

21
Best Practices

• Micro Fiber Cloths and Dust Mops
• 90,000 fibers per square inch
• Picks up more dust and irritants which can reduce
  or even eliminate the need for added chemicals
• Use wet or dry, super absorbency
• Can wash and use 500 times
• Soft Weave is best for general cleaning - dry
  surfaces
• Hard Weave is best for cleaning glass and other
  hard surfaces
• Cotton Blend is best for wet cleaning such as
  restrooms

22
Best Practices

• Micro Fiber Cloths(MFC) Color Coded
• Reduces Cross Contamination
• Yellow Restroom Toilets and Urinals
• Green Desk, Walls and Counters and Sinks
• Pink - Dry, General Purpose Cloth
• Blue Glass and Mirrors
• Custodians drop off dirty MFC every night and
  pick up clean ones at the start of the shift the
  next day.

23
Green Cleaning Best Practices

• Other Strategies
• Use Disinfectants Wisely /Target High Touch Areas
• Door handles, faucets, counter tops, keyboards,
  desks, flush handles, paper towel level, and any
  other high touch area. Let disinfectant work by
  maximizing contact time before wiping off
• Increase Life Cycle of Floor Finish (3-5 Years)
• A high quality floor finish will last many years
  before you need to strip it all the way down.
  Scrub is a better option in most cases.
• Only Strip a Floor when Necessary
• It is always better only to scrub a floor and
  take off only one or two coats of wax than strip
  down to a bare floor.

24
Material Safety Data Sheets MSDS

• Employees have The Right to Know
• MSDS should be located in every building
• Keep current inventory list of MSDS
• Send MSDS list to IL. Dept. of Labor
• Required to have a Written Hazard Communication
  Program
• Annual Training Session
• Bottles are Properly Labeled
• Explain MSDS, NFPA and HMIS

25
National Fire Protection Association Rating System
26
Hazardous Material Identification System HMIS
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Green Cleaning

• Why should I Switch to Green Cleaning?
• Improves the health of students and staff members
  
• Eliminates the need for a multitude of specialty
  cleaning products which saves
• Use as little as four certified products which
  simplifies cleaning, training and MSDS
  requirements
• Best reason to start a Green Cleaning Program
• It's the Law!

28
ENERGY INFORMATION
29
NYMEX Settlement Prices

• Did You Know?
• Since March of 2006, the NYMEX Settlement Price
  has settled over 0.80
• cents just once In fact the
• Average Price per therm 2006
• 0.72 cents per therm
• Average Price per therm 2007
• 0.68 cents per therm
• Average Price per therm Winter 06-07 (7-months)
• 0.67 cents per therm

30
Natural Gas Futures Going Up!

• Cost Alert
• March 08 .8955
• 12-Month (Mar 08 Feb 09) .9276
• Summer (Apr 08 Oct 08) .8917
• Winter (Nov 08 Mar 09) .9619
• If Gas Prices are up then that means

31
Electric Prices Are Also Going Up

• For the year 2007, the cost per kWh was up 10.
• Cost per kWh is projected to increase another 10
  to 12 for 2008-09 school year.
• Capacity Charges are going up 400 in May 2008.
• (from 7,200 to 30,000 per year for LTHS
  electric accounts)
• Com Ed Fixed Price Option will be Phased Out
• Com Ed Auction was Such a Huge Success - they
  will not have it again this year. (Dont worry
  about Exelon, their stock was up 32 in 2007
  while most stocks were down)

32
How Large is the Increase

• LTHS Uses 6 Million kWhs a Year
• Cost per kWh up over 20 in two years.
• For LTHS, that is an increase of 90,000 compared
  to 2-years ago. (6,000,000 kWh x 0.015
  90,000)
• LTHS capacity charge will increased by 22,800
• LTHS Uses 400,000 Therms/Year (0.01 increase
  4,000)
• Natural Gas104,000 Increase (400,000 x 0.26
  104,000)
• 216,800 Increase in Energy Cost

33
Projected Increase in Costs

• In 2006-07, LTHS budgeted around 700,000 for
• natural gas electric
• In 2008-09, LTHSs will need to budget around
  916,800 for natural gas and electric
• Thats a 31 increase in energy cost
• Budget Accordingly

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QuestionsPorter Stadium