Letters: Go green if you can'

Letters: Go green if you can'
http://www.sookenewsmirror.com/opinion/letters/261701891.html

"It's great to see new businesses in Sooke like the car wash/laundry, but my first reaction actually was -- how many chemicals are going to go down their drains?

My husband and I moved to this area from Victoria, because I have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, severe reactions similar to asthma and allergies to all chemicals, petroleum derivatives, additives, colourings, etc., in foods, cleaning products, shampoo, laundry detergents, and so on.

We are fortunate to have our own washer and dryer, so we won't be using Sooke Laundry, yet I can't help but feel bad about the business, because the facilities are so nice, clearly a great deal of care, thought, and planning went into making it, yet the scented detergents, fabric softeners, and air "fresheners" customers use will create a toxic indoor environment, and the dryers will vent a toxic soup outside, so we will be avoiding food-related businesses near them.

It's a shame they didn't choose to be "Green," and require customers to use only unscented, biodegradable, phosphate and chemical-free laundry products, and for the car wash to provide soap which is "Green" as well.

The machines will now be permeated with these chemicals. The dryers may not be able to be cleared of the scents/chemicals (or it will take a long while), but the washing machines can over time be cleaned if white vinegar and baking soda are used, and no detergents are ever used again.

The chemicals in the car wash soap will leave a residue, and when it rains, will wash off the cars and go into the ground and drains.

On a positive note, people are realizing that the laundry smell they associate with cleanliness/freshness is actually toxic/fake, as more kids are sadly diagnosed with asthma and other allergies, and parents are switching to simpler products which are safe for the environment, humans, animals, plants -- life in general.

We live in such a beautiful place, there are so many ways we pollute it, and it's so easy to do the right thing. There's a lot of information about green products on Dr. David Suzuki's and The Green Party's websites. There are more and more locally-made products which are safe to use, and they can be found at farmers' markets and health food stores. Read the labels. If the ingredient list is very long, and you can't pronounce/recognize most of them, they're likely chemicals you don't want in/on your body.

Helene Harrison
Shirley