Ready to Use Cleaning Chemicals

Green purchasing guidance for ready to use cleaning chemicals, including:

Required specifications

Purchasers must include these specifications, unless not possible:

Per RCW 70A.350 all ready-to-use (RTU) cleaning chemicals (including liquids, powders and wipes) must have one of the following third-party certifications:
- Green Seal, Safer Choice, UL ECOLOGO.
- Cradle to Cradle Certified or Material Health Certificate: v3.1 at the Gold level or higher OR v4.0 at the Silver level or higher.

Purchasers should include these specifications, unless not possible:

Additional desirable environmental and health attributes include the following:
- Free of fragrances, such as Safer Choice Fragrance Free.
- Free of dyes.
- Certified low emitting (SCS Indoor Advantage Gold or UL GREENGUARD Gold).
- Certified Biobased products by the USDA BioPreferred Program.
Consider blocking from your contracts products in aerosol containers, which can increase exposure to toxic chemicals, and are relatively expensive.
For cleaning wipes:
We recommend you assess what you are using it for before determining what to purchase. If you only need to clean, look for a Safer Choice certification. If you need to both clean and sanitize or disinfect, look for a Design for the Environment certification. Follow the directions on the packaging to ensure efficacy.

These laws, rules, and executive orders must be included in the contract language:

Find products that meet Washington’s green purchasing specifications:

Use surplus disposal to get rid of items you no longer need. Keep materials out of landfills and make funds for your agency.

Hazardous waste disposal guidelines and options: