[TheThinkTank] Disposing of used simple green

[sprocket]

I let most of the stuff on this list float by, but Nathan, your comments
piqued my interest. So, I did some research and found the simple green's
Material Safety Data Sheet. (http://consumer.simplegreen.com/cons_msds.php)
Here's what it had to say about putting simple green in the soil:

Biodegradability: Simple Green is readily decomposed by naturally
occurring microorganisms....Per OECD Closed Bottle Test, Simple Green®
meets OECD and EPA recommendations for ready biodegradability.

In a standard biodegradation test with soils from three different
countries, Butyl Cellosolve reached 50% degradation in 6
to 23 days, depending upon soil type, and exceeded the rate of
degradation for glucose which was used as a control for
comparison.

Environmental Toxicity Information: Simple Green® is considered
practically non-toxic per EPA’s Aquatic toxicity
scale.
--

Seems like as cleaners go, this stuff is pretty benign, which I think is
why Bicas and a lot of other places use it. The main active ingredient
is butoxyethanol, which decomposes in the environment within a few days
and has not been identified as a major environmental contaminant. It is
not known to build up in any plant or animal species. And curiously,
simple green is the substance used to clean the oil slick off of sea
life when oil tankers spill their muck into the ocean.

I can't imagine that butoxyethanol is what makes Bicas' mesquite tree
grow...I'd bet that its all the extra water its getting...desert trees
love to be watered.

cheers,

Ian


----------




Nathan Pierce wrote:
> Oh my God... that is so bad for the ground (and ground
> water) and surface runoff when it rains.
>
> Most communities have household hazardous waste
> collection facilities, just for these types of
> chemicals that are dangerous, bad for the environment,
> and they don't want in the landfill.
>
>
>
> From,
> Nathan
>
>
> --- troy neiman <troyneiman at myself.com> wrote:
>
>   
>> well, we here at bicas use a sink which drains into
>> a bucket.  the used
>> simple green usually ends up in there and then we
>> pour the bucket, when
>> full onto our mesquite tree in front.  i never would
>> have thought but we
>> have been doing it long before i was involved here. 
>> the tree loves it
>> and has grown from just a 4 foot shrub into a full
>> grown 25 foot tree in
>> 5 or 6 years.  maybe simple green, grease and hand
>> cleaner act as a
>> growth hormones or something.  also we try to
>> encourage that people first
>> dilute the easy green, use minimal amounts of the
>> stuff if soaking parts
>> is absolutely necessary and also reuse it if
>> possible as many times as we
>> can.  troybicas
>>
>>   ----- Original Message -----
>>   From: "Andy Dyson"
>>   To: "The Think Tank"
>>   Subject: [TheThinkTank] Disposing of used simple
>> green
>>   Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2007 19:39:21 -0400
>>
>>
>>   Ah, friendly simple green. Such a nice name. Is
>> there anything you
>>   can
>>   do to this stuff to feel better about disposing of
>> it. What do you
>>   guys
>>   do? .
>>
>>   --
>>   Andrew C. Dyson
>>   Executive Director Neighborhood Bike Works
>>   Increasing opportunities for youth through
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