One of my goals for the Compact was to switch to earth-friendly cleaning products. I had already been using earth-friendly all-purpose cleaner, glass cleaner and dish liquid. I figured that after switching to an environmentally friendly laundry soap (almost anything has to be better than what I use now-- Tide), I'd be pretty eco-friendly. To be honest, I hadn't even considered my auto dishwasher detergent until last week, after a friend forwarded a Chicago Tribune article (http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/health/chi-0704030813apr04,1,7974586.story?ctrack=1&cset=true) about how phosphates, contained in most major dishwasher detergents, are harmful to the environment.
Apparently, the phosphates, which end up in our lakes and rivers, aggressively promote the growth of algae, which suck up all the oxygen causing fish and other aquatic life to die. Here is a statistic from the Chicago Tribune article: Just one pound of man-made phosphates washed down the drain can stimulate the growth of 500 pounds of algae downstream.
According to the article, the highly-rated phosphate-free dishwasher detergent brands include Seventh Generation, Ecover Natural and Trader Joe's. I picked up some TJ's brand detergent and it works just as well as Cascade, which I was using before.
In case the link to the Chicago Tribune article does not work, you can search for it online "Banned in Chicago. . . but available in stores. Phosphates were outlawed in '71, but Daley isn't enforcing dad's law with dish detergents" The author is Michael Hawthorne, and it was published on April 4, 2007.
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