Detergents

Friend or phosphate?

Alternative detergents can ease Assabet's pollution ...
... all you have to do is use them. Residents of the 140,000 households in the Assabet River Watershed can use non-phosphate automatic dishwasher detergents to ease the strain on our river's ecosystem.
Blooming plant life and algae above one of the Assabet River's dams demonstrates the need for nutrient control in our watershed.

The Problem
What is wrong with the Assabet River? It is grossly over-fertilized by nutrients, particularly phosphorus and phosphate, which is a form of phosphorus. These nutrients cause aquatic plants to grow like crazy. The plants blanket many parts of the river during the summer making it difficult and unpleasant to boat or fish in these areas. When these plants die, they stink and can harm fish and other creatures by changing the amount of dissolved oxygen in the river. To restore the Assabet, we must dramatically reduce the amount of phosphorus we put into it.

Between 9% and 34% of the phosphorus load going to wastewater treatment plants from domestic sewage comes from automatic dishwashing detergents. (N.B. Pickering, CRWA, 2001)

How you can help
If you have an automatic dishwasher and your residence is connected to a municipal sewer system, you can help clean up the Assabet River and reduce the cost of wastewater treatment in your community right away.

In February 2008, Governor Patrick signed Bill 536 into law to limit phosphorus in automatic dishwasher detergent (see Metrowest Daily News article). Since 1994 the State's Public Health law has limited phosphorus in many soaps and detergents but exempted all automatic dishwashing detergents from these limits. This significant achievement for all the surface waters of the state resulted from years of hard work by Senator Pamela Resor and many others, including advocacy and testimony by OAR. “The health of our lakes, rivers, and watersheds will benefit from this further protection,” said Sen. Resor. “Towns are overburdened with the increasing costs of removing phosphorus at wastewater treatment plants, and those costs are often transferred to local taxpayers. By eliminating phosphorus at the source we can ease town costs while protecting afflicted bodies of water.”

The new law exempts only commercial dishwashing detergent, hence ensuring that household dishwashing detergent has only trace levels of phosphorus by July 2010. The new law will reduce the amount of phosphorus that enters our wastewater and hence the amount released into the Assabet, simultaneously reducing the cost of removing the phosphorus at the wastewater treatment plants.

Until 2010, your careful choice of dishwasher detergent will make a difference. See the table below to help make good choices, and carefully read the label of whichever dishwasher detergent you buy.

For more information, read the state's press release from Feb 14th , the new general law or jump to OAR's Nutrient pages for more information on phosphorus in detergents. See also the Senate bill 536
Public Health law (Title XVI, Chapter 111, Section 5) being amended.

What about other kinds of household soaps and detergents?
While automatic dishwashing detergents are a significant source of phosphorus, laundry and hand dishwashing soaps and detergents are not. The state's existing phosphorus law, M.G. Chapter 111, Section 5R requires that laundry and hand dishwashing soaps and detergents sold and used in Massachusetts contain only trace amounts of phosphorus, defined as no more than 0.5 percent phosphorus by weight.

For example, if 15% of the phosphorus load to the Assabet River wastewater treatment plants comes from phosphate-containing automatic dishwashing detergents, these detergents would contribute an estimated:

9,686 pounds per year to the Westborough wastewater treatment Plant
3,801 pounds per year to the Marlborough Westerly wastewater treatment plant
4,130 pounds per year to the Hudson wastewater treatment plant
2,046 pounds per year to the Maynard wastewater treatment plant
That's a lot of phosphorus! This load could be eliminated entirely if people used non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergents.

State Senate bill 536 to eliminate the automatic dishwashing detergent exemption that was re-filed by Senators Pamela P. Resor for the current session.

Non-phosphate rinse aids
Much of the groundwater in the Assabet watershed contains a lot of dissolved iron and manganese. If your water comes from a municipal or private well, consider using a non-phosphate rinse aid when you use a non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergent. The rinse aid can help prevent filming of dissolved minerals on your dishes and utensils. White vinegar is also a good rinse aid.

Phosphate content in popular cleaners
Even if you can't find non-phosphate automatic dishwasher detergents, you can still reduce your "phosphorus impact" on the river.

Choose a detergent that is lower in phosphate per dishwasher load. The phosphate content of detergents varies significantly among brands (8.7% by weight is the most allowed under Massachusetts law). In the table below we've included phosphate content per tablespoon to let you calculate the phosphate you're using per load of dishes. Try it out. Measure the number of tablespoons that you use per load of dishes and multiply by the grams of phosphate per tablespoon to get total phosphate per dishwasher load.
Use less! Manufacturer's directions say to fill both detergent cups of your dishwasher. However, unless you have very hard water and very dirty dishes, you may find that considerably less detergent gets your dishes clean.
Again - try it out in your own dishwasher!
"But do they work?" A recent Consumer Reports study found that emzymes in detergents make the biggest difference in a detergent's cleaning ability: "Green products can get dishes clean. Most dishwasher detergents contain phosphates, which enhance cleaning ability. Phosphates also have a [well deserved] reputation for being environmentally harmful because they promote the growth of algae. But four enzyme-containing, phosphate-free detergents--Ecover tablets and powder; Trader Joe's powder; and Method Dish Cubes tablets--were very good to excellent in overall quality." (Read more of the Consumer Reports article.)

Where you can buy non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergents
Local Supermarkets and Stores:
Below is a list of stores that carry non-phosphate detergents in Westborough, Shrewsbury, Hudson, Stow and Concord. Currently, there are no stores in Marlborough, Northborough, Berlin, and Maynard that carry non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergent.
If your favorite supermarket or store doesn't carry non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergents, ask them to! If they need more information about these products, tell them to visit this webpage, and or to call the OAR office at (978) 369-3956.

Eutrophication affects the middle and upper sections of the Assabet the most, including this stretch near Crow Island in Stow.

Acton
Donelan's Supermarket
248 Great Road
Acton, MA 01720
978-635-9893

Roche Brothers
387 Massachusetts Avenue
Acton, MA 01720
978-263-0404

Trader Joe's
145 Great Road
Acton, MA 01720
978-266-8908

Concord
Crosby's Supermarket
211 Sudbury Road
Concord, MA 01742
(978) 287-5713

Debra's Natural Gourmet
98 Commonwealth Avenue
West Concord, MA 01742
(978) 371-7573

Hudson
Basha's Natural Marketplace
196 Washington Street
Hudson, MA 01749
(978) 562-2154

Hannaford Supermarket
213 Washington Street
Hudson, MA 01749
(978) 562-6613

Shrewsbury
Shaws Supermarket
50 Boston Turnpike
Shrewsbury, MA 01545
(508) 797-1126

Trader Joe's
77 Boston Turnpike
Shrewsbury, MA 01545
(508) 755-9560

Stow
Shaws Supermarket
155 Great Road
Stow, MA 01775
(978) 897-5140

Sudbury
Shaws Supermarket
509 Boston Post Road
Sudbury, MA 01776
978-443-7066

Sudbury Farms
439 Boston Post Road
Sudbury, MA 01776
(978) 443-3575

Wayland
Whole Food Market
(Bread and Circus)
Post Road
Wayland, MA 01778
508-358-7700

Westborough
Simple Enough
18 Lyman Street
Westborough,MA01581
508-366-7037

Note: Stop and Shop stores used to carry these products but their Corporate Office in Quincy has decided to remove them. If you would like your local Stop and Shop to offer non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergents, you can reach the Headquarters Office by calling 781-380-8000 and asking to speak to the Marketing Department.

The cost of non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergents: Most non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergents are more expensive than their phosphate-containing counterparts. In general, phosphate substitutes are more expensive than phosphates. But the cost of removing phosphates at wastewater treatment plants and potentially from storm water is even higher. Spending a little more on a non-polluting detergent is a worthwhile investment.

Wholesale Distributors in New England
United Natural Foods
Telephone: (800) 877-2240 Product Information and Customer Service
(800) 877-8898 x 32239 (retail accounts)

Get it online:
This is not an exhaustive list. Let us know if you find other companies that sell non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergent. OAR does not endorse any particular non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergent. However, we want to hear about your experiences using these products. Contact OAR

Real Goods

Links to more information
The following are the web sites of companies that make non-phosphate detergents. Again, OAR does not endorse any particular detergent. Please comment on these or let us know if you know of any others.
Bi-O-Kleen
Ecover
SeventhGeneration
Shaklee

Other links
Soap and Detergent Association (SDA)
• SDA-Dishwashing Detergents Click here
• SDA-Automatic Dishwashing Click here

Centre Europeen D'Etudes des Polyphosphates (CEEP)
CEEP (Centre Européen d'Etudes sur les Polyphosphates) was created in 1971 as the joint research fund for the polyphosphate industry. CEEP became a CEFIC Sector Group in 1996 (CEFIC = European Chemical Industry Council). CEEP provides a forum for scientific research and the circulation of information concerning the impact of phosphates on the environment, their properties and the performance of polyphosphate products. Their website is in English.

Other phosphorus sources to think about:
Significant quantities of nutrients are also carried into the Assabet River and its tributary streams from lawns, streets and parking lots by storm water runoff.

Another source of phosphorus in your household is food waste, that is the scraps of food you wash down your sink and especially the food ground up in a food disposal or "pig." Instead of sending this phosphorus-rich material to your community's wastewater treatment, compost it!