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Down Yonder: A swim in the... sewer?
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“Biodegradable,” read the product label. “Concentrated Marine Degreaser.”
“Well, hey, that’s pretty good,” the skipper said. “I’m always worried about putting harmful chemicals into the water. You can’t be too careful.”
“What, exactly, does biodegradable mean?” asked his friend. “Does that mean the product’s chemical composition breaks down naturally? Or does it mean the chemicals themselves break down?”
“It doesn’t matter,” said the skipper. “This here label says the product is biodegradable and that’s good enough for me.”
“It also says here that this cleaner, no, excuse me, degreaser, will clean everything from engines to sails,” said the friend. “Must be pretty powerful stuff.”
“Yeah, it’s powerful and biodegradable,” said the skipper.
“Maybe,” said his friend. “But listen to this part of the label:
“Use rubber gloves when using full strength,” it said. “Keep out of reach of children. Do not take internally. Rinse thoroughly after cleaning. Use of concentrate on some painted surface may cause streaking. Use only with adequate ventilation. Avoid prolonged contact with skin. If swallowed, drink plenty of water followed by lemon juice or diluted vinegar. See a physician.
“In case of contact with eyes, flush immediately with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes and rinse with five percent boric acid solution.
“See a physician.
“If contact causes skin irritation continues, (yeah, you guessed it) see a physician.
“This is a strong degreasing solution and is not intended for delicate surfaces.”
“Wow,” said the skipper. “Readin’ that label sure don’t make this cleaner seem all that harmless, huh?”
“No, it doesn’t,” said his friend. “You wouldn’t think a harmless, biodegradable product like this here miracle cleaner would require you to use rubber gloves or avoid prolonged contact with skin.
“If it was dumped in the water, how would the fish avoid prolonged contact with the skin — or scales?”
“Oh, that wouldn’t matter,” said the skipper. “The water would dilute it unless, of course, enough of it was dumped into the water.”
“Come to think of it, we use lots of stuff around the house that put all together, supplies lots of pollution,” said the friend. “We’ve gotten used to usin’ this stuff and never think about what it might be doin’ to the environment. Most of the cleaners we use have in them solvents and alcohol, both which emit hydrocarbons and other stuff. We use chemical insecticides because they’re easier than sweeping or vacuuming or beating throw rugs outside. We use chemical air fresheners when Florida has the most wonderful air freshener of all — it’s called OUTSIDE and when you open the windows it comes right in. Furniture polish, glass cleaner, floor polish, oven cleaner, laundry detergents, tile cleaners, shaving cream, hair styling mousse, deodorants, perfumes and colognes all are potential sources of pollution.”
“Maybe,” said the skipper. “But folks don’t really use enough of all that stuff to do any harm.”
“Unless, of course, everybody was usin’ them all at the same time,” said the friend. “I talked to a lawn care worker the other day who told me he alone dumped one tone of fertilizers on a bunch of lawns in a single day. What if every grass cutter in town dumped one ton of chemical fertilizer every day?”
“That’s a lot of chemicals eventually washin’ into the water,” the skipper admitted.
“My point exactly,” said the friend. “Our creeks and rivers, bays and inlets, and the Gulf of Mexico were not meant to be a sewer.”
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