by Brianna Crandall — October 16, 2015—The Ashkin Group, the professional cleaning industry’s advocate for green and sustainable cleaning, is advising building owners and managers, jansan distributors and facilities services providers that as of January 2015, the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Environmental Design (LEED) sustainable buildings program has redefined the requirements for LEED-compliant de-icers.
As of January 2015, LEED-compliant de-icers must now contain essentially 100% calcium magnesium acetate (CMA).
This update is especially important for those facilities that are now LEED-certified, are seeking LEED certification, or are following LEED’s direction in maintaining a green and sustainable facility.
What is likely the key update is that de-icers used to help melt snow and ice to help prevent slips and falls must now contain essentially 100 percent calcium magnesium acetate (CMA). This means that many of the de-icers that previously met LEED requirements are no longer permissible.
According to the update, de-icers that contain more than five percent of the following ingredients are no longer considered environmentally preferred:
- Sodium chloride
- Calcium chloride
- Magnesium chloride
- Potassium chloride
- Potassium acetate
- Ammonia-based products
These substances are permissible if they are in quantities of less than five percent.
Additionally, the new LEED updates require that facilities implement a de-icer quality-assurance monitoring program. This involves tracking such things as:
- When and where de-icers were used;
- If the de-icer was used prior to snow events;
- If areas were shoveled prior to de-icer application; and
- Climatic issues such as the amount of snow over the season and the temperatures when the de-icer was applied.
“While the update is effective as of January 2015, building owners and managers do have three years to phase out the use of de-icing products that are no longer environmentally preferred,” said Stephen Ashkin, president of The Ashkin Group. “The reasoning behind this update is that CMA is biodegradable, will not harm surrounding vegetation, and tends to be less corrosive.”
Ashkin noted, however, that CMA may damage asphalt and concrete.
