By Wikipedia definition, greenwashing is "a term used to describe the practice of companies disingenuously spinning their products and policies as environmentally friendly, such as by presenting cost cuts as reductions in use of resources".

My renovations are taking more time due in large part to my efforts to be aware of and avoid companies and manufacturers that practice greenwashing. As a homeowner, I am doing me very best to thoroughly research what products to use, the companies that manufacture and sell them and what their ultimate impact on the environment might be. But here are the big questions:
 

Where do I go to find out if a product is in fact "Green" certified?

Who sets the standards (if any) that must be met to get the "Green" label?

And how can I as a homeowner avoid falling prey to "Greenwashers"?

As I tend to do in my search for knowledge, I started with my Google search bar. Three hours later, after sorting through enormous amounts of fluff, non-researched based opinions and ambiguity in general, I've decided there are vast grey areas amongst all this green. The closest I could find to the "Green Police" in Canada was http://www.ecologo.org/en/, the website for EcoLogo, North America’s largest, most respected environmental standard and certification mark (in their words). From their site, a consumer such as myself can search green products and services for their home, search certification standards and browse green purchasing resources.

With that said, I started my product search with what I thought would be one of the easiest fixes around my home: Changing my lightbulbs to Compact Fluorescent Lights(CFL's). Lo and behold, there was not a single product in the compact fluorescent lightbulb category that met the standards and has been tagged with an Ecologo certification mark. 

Upon further investigation, I found interesting articles on how CFL's increase greenhouse gasses and how the mercury inside CFL's can become dangerous if they are broken or not disposed of properly.

So, I guess I am back to the drawing board. So tomorrow, in my efforts to avoid greenwashing, I think I will just simply turn off all my lights, leave the house and go play a round of golf. At least those are some "greens" I can understand from time to time!

Come back next week to see how my green home renovations are (or aren't) progressing!