Eco-Friendly Products

Products can cause harm to ourselves and our environment. Government regulations don't always provide enough protection (it's a big job!) and producers don't always have eco-friendlieness as a top priority. 

We continuously make choices about the products we use. It's not easy to consider the eco-friendliness of all the choices. But by your own raising awareness of value of making eco-friendly choices and some options to help, you will be able to reduce risk to yourself and the environment.

Some aspects of eco-friendly choices are covered on other parts of HopGreen.org (e.g. Transportation and Zero-Waste), but this page covers other products.

A few things that help you assess the eco-friendliness of products are: are they B-corporations (certified commitment to social and environmental responsibility)? what do the ingredients report (note that not all ingredients need to be reported)?,  what does their website say? what do independent reviewers and testing labs report? Avoid falling in the greenwashing trap, where advertising misleads consumers into thinking a product or company is eco-friendly when it isn't.

Note - this page is currently being developed and will have more information over time

Nearly everyone in Hopkinton is aware of PFAS and the levels in the town water supply that are of concern to our health.

• In April 2024, the EPA announced a national enforceable drinking water standard for the 'forever chemical' PFAS at 4 parts per trillion. This article reviews what that means for Massachusetts water systems, which regulate PFAS at 20 parts per trillion. 

• PFAS is known to cause serious health issues in humans but there hasn't been enough completed research to easily summarize it. Where PFAS levels in the water have been relatively high, there have been higher rates of certain cancers, auto-immune issues, and more. Fetuses and infants are thought to be affected more than adults.

• PFAS refers to a large group chemicals used in products and have been in use since the 1940s. They help prevent sticking and staining, and provide other benefits. Manufacturers had known about potential health risks but did not disclose them. It's only been in the last decade that researchers are studying the effects. PFAS don't readily leave the body and accumulate, so their potential for harm is long lasting.

• A main way people take in PFAS is through drinking water. Concerning levels of PFAS get into drinking water by direct dumping of products containing it, and through other means. In Hopkinton, an article by HopNews posits the source of the high levels at Fruit Street; see also the town's reply and a follow-up HopNews article about the reply. While the source of the Fruit Street well PFAS is not definitively known, the town is addressing PFAS by adding filters and connecting to the MWRA water supply. Sensitive populations have been advised on alternatives until the problem is being addressed by the DPW through filters and a hookup to the MWRA water supply. The filters and alternative water supply are expensive solutions and may not be permanent, as PFAS levels may rise in our other water supplies but they are an effective solution for now.

• Another main way that people get PFAS into their systems is through food. Eliminating PFAS from the water supply, and from wrappers and containers, can help.

• The Middlesex County District Attorney's office has provided additional information about the issue. There is a statewide voucher legislative program that is being considered, H.853. They hosted a summit, which was recorded.

There is more to PFAS than the town water supply.

• Private wells in Hopkinton may also have higher levels of PFAS. Testing your well water for PFAS and using a home drinking water filter specifically for PFAS are options.

• Eating fish caught from lakes containing PFAS is a problem. It would appear that the lakes in Hopkinton where people routinely fish do not contain PFAS levels that warrant a warning, but there are already mercury warnings about eating certain fish from Echo Lake and Whitehall Reservoir.

• We all use products that contain PFAS. By reducing our use of PFAS products, we help reduce levels of PFAS that we will accumulate and that will end up in the soil or our drinking water.

• Eat locally-grown food without packaging, because packaging can contain PFAS.

• Encourage legislation that reduces PFAS risk, at the federal, state, and local levels.

• Encourage companies whose products contain PFAS to remove them. Acknowledge and patronize businesses that reduce PFAS use.

• The illustration shows some common sources of PFAS in products we use.

• It's not easy to tell if products contain PFAS and federal and MA regulations do NOT currently require the reporting of PFAS in products.

• PFAS Central lists products and companies that are not using PFAS. For example, some raingear products do not contain PFAS. While this list is a start, it's limited.

• Avoid buying products that contain PFAS when possible. For example, avoid using pesticides and herbicides. Cook popcorn on the stovetop or in an air popper instead of using the microwavable popcorn bags. Eat fresh, locally grow food rather than food packaged in wrappers containing PFAS.

• Choose a PFAS-free alternative. For example, choose a cookware material that does not contain PFAS like cast iron or stainless steel, or find non-stick cookware that does not contain PFAS.

The Hopkinton Sustainable Green Committee is looking into the following potential town actions that might involve the application of products containing PFAS:

• • Replacement of the natural turf field at the high school with an artificial turf field - artificial turf fields and the fillers used witht them contain PFAS. Players and others using the fields are exposed to PFAS particles in the air and skin contact. The PFAS in the turf can leach into the groundwater. Manufacturing and installing artificial turf result in PFAS exposure to people and the environment. Disposal of PFAS turf is also problematic.

  • Herbicides that may be used to treat excessive plant growth at Lake Maspenock may contain PFAS, meaning PFAS would be added to the water. The specific produts and potential levels are not yet known.

  • Hopkinton is forming a PFAS committee to look at what else can be done (2024).

  • Hopkinton held a PFAS forum in May 2024 - you can watch it here

  • Hopkinton has installed a filter for town water and monitors the PFAS levels.

  • Private well owners can test their wells for PFAS and use filters to treat it.

The Hopkinton Sustainble Green Committee has endorsed the bill sponsored by MA Rep. Jim McGovern, “Protect America’s Children from Toxic Pesticides Act” (PACTPA)" U.S. House H.R. 5085.

Plastics are a major environmental threat, directly harming wildlife that inadvertently consume bottle caps or plastic bags, having an impact on human health when urned in incinerators, based on oil - the manufacturing and transportation of which increase greenhouse gas emissions, and the microplastics that get into our bloodstreams and may cause immune system issues and heart disease. Use a reusable bottle, preferably one not made of plastic and hang on to it. Refuse plastic cutlery and use your own. Buy laundry detergent and other products in non-plastic jugs and packaging.