'Green' Movement Growing Thanks to Local Businesses

It may be baby steps, but the “green” movement is starting to make in-roads on many personal and professional levels in the Scotch Plains and Fanwood communities. Awareness and participation with recycling is at an all-time high, and many A&P shoppers are bringing their own bags, receiving penny discounts for reusing plastic bags and two-cent-savings for paper, canvas, or other non-disposable bags. Now, three small businesses are going one step further to promote conservation and eco-friendly campaigns.

While the sign may read Robert’s Dry Cleaning at Chi Lee’s laundry facility in Scotch Plains, Lee is actually not offering dry cleaning services at all. The establishment, which has been located in the heart of downtown for decades, converted to a “wet cleaning system” two-and-a-half years ago. It is one of only 15 to 20 percent of the dry cleaning operations in the country to do so.

When Lee first bought the business four years ago, he dry cleaned clothes with perchloroethylene, or "perc,” a chemical that according to the Environmental Protection Agency can cause headaches, loss of coordination, and irritations of the eye, nose, and throat. California health officials have even gone so far as to directly link perc to esophageal cancer, lymphoma, cervical, and bladder cancer. If perc usage is not regulated properly, it can get into the ground, water, and air.

While the Garden State has not imposed as stringent regulations or restrictions on perc usage as California, Lee saw the writing on the wall and decided to completely convert his facility to wet cleaning, which utilizes special soaps and water to launder clothes.

“Perc is environmentally not really safe,” Lee explained. “Business-wise, perc is great. It takes a short time and not much labor. You put the perc in, and it evaporates. When you take the clothes out of the machine, they’re dry and ready to be pressed. With wet cleaning, the difference is the clothes come out wet, instead of dry. So we have to take the clothes out, hang it up, and reform it back to normal. If you just took the clothes out and put it on the press, it wouldn’t work. We need to use more care with each garment. It takes more work. We don’t use any chemicals. Dry cleaners usually need state or federal air permits, but we don’t need them because we don’t have any air pollution with this process. It’s natural cleaning, eco-friendly cleaning, and you can use it for 99 percent of all fabrics.”

So far, the Scotch Plains resident has not raised prices in order to off-set the four new machines he purchased in order to convert the facility, or the additional hand-labor involved with each piece of clothing. Lee also hasn’t put up banners, signs, or business cards advertising his eco-friendly process, but he plans to do both.

“If we charged more all of a sudden, people would complain,” Lee said. “Some people haven’t noticed that we changed our system, but some people have and say ‘oh, the clothes smell good.’ People are used to smelling perc, especially on raincoats when they get wet. The wet cleaning is like a left-side driver in England. It takes some getting used to, but it’s the wave of the future.”

Scotch Plains resident Jennifer Mortarulo is also leading the charge with her newly launched company, Clean Green Co., a house cleaning service that only uses eco-friendly, non-toxic products, infuses essential oils into the air, and creates zero waste while cleaning.

Mortarulo, who worked as a print designer in New York City’s fashion industry, started using all-natural cleaning products when her dog had a seizure four years ago.

“My vet asked me about if I used a particular air freshener, which I used every day,” Mortarulo said. “She told me that recent veterinarian studies have shown that this particular brand of air freshener has traces of cyanide in it. They were low enough where the FDA didn’t force them to put it on the packaging, but enough to hurt an animal’s nervous system. So my first reaction was, ‘Look, I love my dog, but what’s it doing to me?’ Being the extremist I am, I went and threw away every single cleaner in my house. I started from scratch and went about researching how to use baking soda and lemon to clean my own house. During my research I learned that if you used commercial products with trace toxins once, they’re fine. They won’t harm you. But if you use it over and over again over a long period of time, it can cause respiratory problems, things like asthma, allergies to other things, and it can screw up your nervous system. Then I started to think that I can bring this message and service to other people. I know how to clean. I actually like cleaning, and I can do it in a way that's better for you, your family, and your pets.”

Clean Green Co. launched in May 2008 and has almost 40 clients, some as far as Rumson, Morristown, and Lyndhurst. Most are not necessarily looking for ways to support the green movement, but need to limit the amount of chemical irritants in their homes due to health issues. Mortarulo reports that she also has over 200 members who signed up at street fairs to receive her bi-weekly newsletter.

Mortarulo’s service does everything a regular house cleaning company does, and she states that her rates are comparable to that of other professional maid and housekeeping services—the difference being that she uses non-toxic product brands such as Ecover, Holy Cow, and Wow Green, none of which are available at the local supermarket. An average-sized home of approximately 2,500 square feet usually costs $128 for a two-hour cleaning by two cleaners, which includes a free estimate.

“We bring all the products, and then wash the rags with eco-friendly detergent in my energy-saving washing machine,” Mortarulo said. “We never use paper towels and create no waste when we clean. We’re at that level. You have to live in a clean environment, but there are better and bigger options now, which is what I’m trying to do with my company. My goal is to make sure we satisfy everybody. You should get what you pay for. My clients are calling me because it’s important to them to use green products. It’s a grassroots scenario.”

Mortarulo has already given green movement lectures at the Scotch Plains and Watchung libraries and is hoping to partner with preschools and organic markets to further spread the word.

“It’s the small stuff that really matters,” she said. “It’s the big stuff that people have a hard time wrapping their minds and wallets around. A friend of mine tells people to pick just one thing that they think can make a difference. Do it for a year so it becomes habit, and then add something else.”

Padosa, a site that "helps grow businesses in sustainability, enviro-friendliness, and green," is another company that’s trying to spread the word, but on a wider, business-to-business front. 

“We target the small business community,” explained Jennifer Krauss, a Scotch Plains resident and Padosa’s director of product development. “Padosa is a free online community of enthusiasts who want to network and share information about sustainability. It helps people connect and get their projects started. Green isn’t a trend anymore. Given where we are, this is the state of things. There’s no choice really. Using the lens of sustainability as innovation, we can help you find ways to set your company apart. We’re not the experts, but we have the resources to get the answers and connect you with those who might have the solutions to your particular challenges. Our goal is to create a best practices tool for vendors to share. We’re trying to be a real resource for people”

Padosa launched in April 2009 and currently has 475 members, the majority of which are from the New Jersey and New York area. Krauss states that there are several other like-minded sites for residential concerns, but none offer the content as well as the networking community as Padosa for businesses.

“There’s a big opportunity to be more self-sustainable, but there’s a hesitation to do it from a cash-flow problem,” Krauss said. “Absolutely, making changes to be more mindful of your environment will save you money over time. There are ways to save and make money, but it takes investment—whether it’s as small as changing out your lightbulbs or as big as installing more efficient ventilation systems. There are so many benefits, and companies will see paybacks. Padosa means neighborhood in Hindi. And that’s really what we’re all about: building a community.”