We must be careful because some products that claim to be biodegradable, I ran across a popular cleaning product that proudly claims to be “biodegradable” and even has an environmentally pleasing name and color. The main (active) cleaning chemical is a nonylphenolethoxylate (NPE), made solely of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. This class of chemicals are considered suspicious because they are possible endocrine disruptors. This means they may mimic the endocrine hormones and may cause havoc with a female’s reproductive system. NPE’s do biodegrade to a benzene ring type structure and other simpler structures. This biodegrading may or may not lead to a less hazardous chemical, but still hazardous. Although it is biodegradable, this product is by no means environmentally friendly.
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