What can you do to make your nursery more eco-friendly? How do you find the best products? How can you distinguish between what’s “green” and what’s “greenwashed”? Are there ratings you can rely on?

 

by Ruth A. Wilson, Ph.D.

On the first floor of the White House are three elegant parlors named for their decorating schemes—the Red Room, the Blue Room, and the Green Room. Today, it’s becoming fashionable to think “green” when building, decorating, and remodeling—not a color, but a concern for the environment. “Going green” often has health and economic implications, as well.

As a parent interested in doing what is best for your baby, you may have given some thought as to what you can do to make your nursery more eco-friendly. For this new precious child, parenting means asking a whole new set of questions. A good place to start is reflecting on what “going green” really means. There are three important components to keep in mind:

• Use eco-friendly products. Choose products that have little or no negative impact on the environment and then using the products wisely by avoiding waste.

• Provide a healthy environment. Choose products that are safe and non-toxic.

• Watch out for “greenwashing.” Not everything advertised as “green” can be trusted to live up to the claim. As Adam Neugebauer, a project manager for ConSol, an energy efficiency consulting company in Stockton, California, writes in his regular “Going Green” column in the September/October 2009 Exchange magazine for early childhood educators:  “Some claims made about the eco-friendliness of products are completely unsubstantiated, horribly misleading, or even outright bogus.”

Cleanable rugs and honeycomb blinds

I went to Dan Wildenhaus, technical manager with Fluid Market Strategies in Portland, Oregon, for some advice on “greening” baby’s room. Dan’s first suggestion was to get rid of wall-to-wall carpet. “Carpets become a reservoir of everything that has ever been tracked through or in the air in a baby’s room.” His suggestion is to have a hard floor surface with a cleanable rug.  This, he says, is “a HUGE upgrade to long-term air quality.”

Dan also offers these suggestions:

• airing out the room occasionally

• using only low or no VOC paints (Volatile Organic Compounds) when painting walls

• not making the bed after baby is up—instead, hang the blankets over the side of the crib to avoid trapping moisture from sweating and breathing

• upgrading the air-circulation filter in your furnace or heat pump to MERV 8 rating

I also talked to Jon Donze, project manager of 510 Interiors in Olympia, Washington, about window coverings. Jon says that choosing a window covering wisely can greatly reduce the amount of energy lost and make the room more comfortable and safe for your baby.

However, some shades and blinds—while good for light control and loss of heat—have strings that can be strangulation hazards. Jon suggests cordless blinds as a healthy alternative. He also suggests using cellular—or honeycomb—style blinds, as they provide more insulation.

Resources for finding “green” products

With “greenwashing” to contend with and your baby being far more sensitive to chemicals and toxins than adults, trying to purchase “green” products can be a complex undertaking. Fortunately, there are some resources and certifications you can count on. Adam Neugebauer and Dan Wildenhaus suggest these:

• GREENGUARD Environmental Institute
• Green Seal
• Healthy Child Healthy World “Shop Healthy” guides
• King County EcoConsumer “Eco Cool Remodel Tool”
• Green Living Made Easy “Green Bedroom”

A new book, Go Green Rating Scale by Phil Boise (2009), is another resource you may find helpful. While this rating scale was designed for group childcare settings, many of the items on the scale and related suggestions apply to a home setting, as well. 

More tips

Using the above resources, you’ll find hundreds of suggestions for greening the nursery.  Following are just a few:

• Look for natural skin care products, including sunscreen insect repellent.

• Consider using glass baby bottles instead of plastic. Of course, nursing is even “greener”!

• Use an organic crib mattress and organic bedding.

• Look for 100 percent cotton clothing.

• Avoid cleaning products with harsh chemicals. Vinegar and baking soda are much safer and can be used to clean almost anything.

Your child may never have the opportunity to move into the Green Room of the White House, yet there are many things you can do—both big and small—to make your baby’s room a green room in your own home.

 

Dr. Ruth Wilson is an educational consultant and curriculum writer. Her primary areas of expertise are early childhood environmental education and peace education.