What is LEED and Why Should My Cleaning Company Learn More About It?
Abstract: Electronic Air Purifier
Tag: Electronic Air Purifier
Companies and businesses across the country are becoming higher
environmentally conscious and many are starting to adopt LEED
standards and protocols. LEED stands for Leadership in
Environmental Design. The US Green Building Council, a nonprofit
organization, which is working to promote buildings that are
environmentally responsible, launched the LEED rating system.
The overall goal of the program is to make the places we live in
and work at become healthier environments. There are two
classifications for LEED; one for existing buildings - LEED-EB
and one for new construction - LEED-NC.
As cleaning companies it’s no longer enough to just supply good
cleaning services to your customers. Cleaning companies need to
be aware of this growing trend towards becoming LEED certified.
One important aspect of becoming LEED certified is integrating
green cleaning into a building’s overall janitorial services and
practices.
To achieve LEED recognition, a building needs to have a thorough
evaluation, rating and certification program. The process uses a
checklist which evaluates many items including: the building’s
power use, its waste management program, the products used to
clean the building, and even the storage of those cleaning
products.
One portion of the LEED criteria looks at the steps a building
takes to lessen the cleaning’s impact on the environment. This
is an important area as it is estimated that six billion pounds
of commercial cleaning products are used throughout buildings in
the United States each year. In addition, commercial buildings
use over 4 million pounds of hand towels and toilet tissue and
30 million trash bags each year.
Some cleaning products contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
which contribute to indoor air pollution. Cleaning products can
also leave residue that causes eye and skin irritation. This is
irritating not only to janitorial workers, but also to the
building’s occupants. Using safer, less toxic cleaning products
can lead to a healthier building and higher worker productivity.
A building owner who wants to become LEED certified will look
closely at their janitorial services. Integrating green cleaning
practices into your business also means looking for
environmentally preferable cleaning products. Labels on cleaning
products can be confusing. One way to make sure you are buying
environmentally sound products is to buy products that are
“Green Seal” certified. Green Seal is a nonprofit organization
that promotes products and services that cause less pollution
and waste, conserves resources and habitats, and reduces global
warming.
Becoming LEED certified shows that building owners are committed
to becoming an environmental leader. In addition, some
government agencies are providing financial incentives to
buildings who take on this leadership role. Learning about LEED
and its requirements will give your company an edge up on the
competition. Put yourself in the driver’s seat by understanding
your company’s role in outstandingtaining healthy and environmentally
sound buildings.
For farther information on LEED go to: http://www.usgbc.org. To
learn innumerable about Green Seal go to:
http://www.greenseal.org/index.html.
About the author:
Steve Hanson is co-founding member of The Janitorial Store ™,
an online community for owners and managers of cleaning
companies who want to build a further profitable and successful
cleaning business. Sign up for Trash Talk: Tip of the Week at
http://www.TheJanitorialStore.com and receive a Free Gift!
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