What we're doing right
A cleaner kind of soap
22nd November 2008
Phosphate-free soaps clean just as well
Algal blooms like on the surface of this lake are spawned by phosphorus pollution, like from household soaps and agricultural runoff.
An independent lab test conducted by Consumer Testing Laboratories in Bentonville, Ariz., has found that a botanical soap called Wave 2X High Performance Auto Dishwasher Gel, made by Earth Friendly Products, was just as effective at cleaning dirty dishes as phosphate-rich Cascade.
Phosphate-free detergents are already widely available – Wal-Mart and Loblaws have their own lines – as governments move to limit phosphates. Manitoba has regulations in place, while the federal goverment proposes to limit the concentration of phosphates in household dishwasher detergent to 0.05 per cent by July, 2010. But the problem won’t be eliminated: Agricultural run-off, fertilizers and human and livestock waste still account for a big portion of the problem.
Phosphate is not a toxin, but a super-fertilizer. In rivers and lakes, it can stimulate blooms of algae, which soak up all the oxygen, choking out plants and fish.
Published in The Green Report in The Globe and Mail
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