Suffolk Bans Detergents

Like most rural areas, Long Island's Suffolk County has no major sewer system and, except in the largest towns, cannot afford to build one in the near future. Because Suffolk's 1,200,000 residents depend on backyard cesspools and septic tanks, household wastes that do not break down in natureespecially detergentseventually seep into the underground water supply. As a result, more and more drinking water flows out of the tap with a smelly foam that tastes awful and perhaps affects human health.

Last week the Suffolk County legislature took a step unprecedented in the U.S. It banned the sale of virtually all detergents used to wash clothes or clean homes. The ban, which is effective March 1, will be mostly a test of housewives' restraint. Although the law imposes penalties (up to $250 and 15 days in jail) on sellers of detergents, anybody who wants them badly enough can buy them legally in adjoining Nassau County. The real problem is that the detergent industry has not yet developed substitute soaps that work as well and also break down in nature. Even so, the Suffolk County law will help speed the industry's efforts to produce something better.

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