Did you know a majority of Aerosol refill cans that are manufactured for odor neutralizing products are made of tin-plated steel which is easily recyclable. It can simply be sorted with the rest of your steel containers. Furthermore, of aerosol cans currently manufactures are made up of, up to 25% recycled material.

Given the public’s concern about solid waste disposal, the aerosol industry teamed with the steel industry to promote the collection of empty aerosol cans in recycling programs nationwide. In most neighborhoods you can simply leave them curbside or take them to a recycling buy-back/drop-off center near you. Aerosol cans that are made of aluminum are recyclable as well. To ensure your local recycling center accepts aerosol cans go to www.earth911.org .

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In transition from spring to summer, there are constant temperature changes, which have the ability to lead to drastic weather changes as well.  This weather can include rain, thunder, lightening, high winds, tornadic activity and flooding.  To be more aware of the weather in your area several news stations offer a free or pay service to update you via email and mobile phone of severe weather in your area.  Below is some info on one such program in the Kansas City area (Channel 9, Weather Call).  It is pretty neat and in my opinion well worth the $6 a year.

In cooperation with Channel 9 are bringing a state-of-the art personal storm warning service to our 8 county listening area. WeatherCall™ combines advanced technology now in use by the National Weather Service with robust emergency telephone notification. Chief Meteorologist, Bryan Busby will call you on the telephone and/or send you an email if your location falls inside a specific warning area, 24 hours a day. This potentially life saving service is available for a subscription rate of only $6.95  per year for new customers $6.00 for renewal . Renewal 1 year from original date of purchase.

The WeatherCall system is continuously monitoring the National Weather Service’s NOAA weatherwire.  Unlike the decades-old county-wide warning method, WeatherCall uses the new NWS storm-based warning technology, GIS (computerized mapping), and then compares a subscriber’s exact location to the specific warning area.  When a severe weather warning includes your location, the system will immediately notify you through telephone calls, SMS text messaging to your mobile phone, email or all of these methods that severe weather is in your IMMEDIATE area.

Generally the public has had concerns about the use of aerosols in today’s world, and the constant focus on each person’s carbon footprint –the amount of carbon dioxide a person emits, either directly or indirectly- has everyone taking a second look at their everyday activities in relation to the health and well-being of the environment.

One major environmental focus is air pollution, more specifically the lowest level of the atmosphere, the air we live and breathe in. As far as this level of the atmosphere goes, the major concern has been/is aerosols contribution to smog, lowering the quality of the air we breathe and its affect on global warming.

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s) released into the air, react with sunlight and nitrogen oxides to create smog. While aerosols do in fact contribute slightly to smog because they admit VOC’s, the interaction is minimal. According to the EPA aerosols -as a whole- contribute a mere 5% of the total man-made VOC’s in the atmosphere and significantly less than that when taking natural sources of VOC into account (such as cows, trees and wetlands).

Efforts by manufacturers to go green have not only led to the elimination of CFC’s in aerosols in the U.S. (and almost world-wide), but also a significant reduction in the emission of VOC’s and propellants produced in general. Some aerosol products made by Technical Concepts (Microburst 3000, 9000 Odor Neutralizers) offer 60% less VOC’s their any of their industry counterparts. The more pressure the public puts on manufacturers to go green, the more it offers a competitive advantage to those that are, and in turn forces everyone else to follow suite.

We find ourselves in a day and age that is seeing an ever-growing emphasis on eco-friendly or “green” practices. The purpose of ‘going green’ is to address human illnesses that arise from exposure as well as damage to the environment (water, soil, air) from disposal of certain products, according to Wikipedia.

In an industry that revolves around cleaning supplies, this is no different- as a matter of fact the spotlight is shining directly on us. “Green cleaning” is a hot topic; a term that describes a growing trend in favor of using cleaning methods with environmentally-friendly ingredients and chemicals to preserve human health and environmental quality. Every little step that can be taken to improve the safety, creation, use and eventual disposal of cleaning products in an earth-friendly manner, must be taken. One major area of interest is in the arena of aerosols, mainly their effect on the Earth’s atmosphere; low level (0-8,000 feet) and upper/outer level or “Ozone” layer.

More than 30 years ago there were heavy concerns that chlorofluorocarbons (CFC’s) from aerosols (and other products) were have a deteriorating effect on the Ozone layer, the outermost layer of the Earth’s atmosphere (also known as the stratosphere). The Ozone layer plays a key role in protecting us from harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays; damage to this layer would/could be harmful to the health of the human race, increasing the risk of skin cancer, cataracts and global warming.

Eventually the EPA banned the use of CFC propellants in aerosols, and all aerosols went to non-CFC propellants. Currently all consumer aerosol products in the United States (and almost world-wide, as of 1996) are CFC-free. However, developing nations are not slated to have CFC’s completely phased out until 2010, according to nocfcs.org.