For me to poop on*
March 10, 2009emily 4 Comments »Is there anything we do on a regular basis that’s good for the environment (where “we” = the average citizen)? I ask because increasingly it seems that the answer is, well, no. From the imported bananas that we eat to the bottled water that we drink to even the toilet paper with which we wipe. Yes, you read that correctly. I read an article recently that talked about the ultra-soft toilet paper that Americans are so fond of, and how that gets made. Rather than painstakingly relating the article to you, I’ll just get to the main point: We’re wiping our butts with virgin and old-growth forests from Canada, the United States, and South America. Why? Because we like super soft toilet paper. And trees found in those types of forests yield the extra-long fibers that make super soft toilet paper possible. I, for one, had no idea. We’re a devout Charmin household, I confess, and I had no clue that the type of toilet paper we use (and facial tissue, for that matter) was so terrible for the environment. I’ll be taking a hard look at these rankings, to see if I can get any of these eco-friendlier brands here in Gainesville.
*Bonus points if you get the reference.
Posted on March 10th, 2009 at 11:09 pm
Conan reference. (Love that little pup.)
Thanks for always bringing these important points to my awareness. I think I’m going to start using leaves.
Posted on March 11th, 2009 at 1:09 am
Greenpeace also has a tissue guide that might help you: http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/campaigns/forests/tissueguide
I like that you take action after you learn about these things. It breaks my little green heart when people become discouraged when they hear bad news about the environment and then just sort bitterly dismiss the issue. The good news is, we CAN make a difference!
We stopped using paper towels for the same reason and have switched to using rags, which work perfectly fine, if not better. And we also switched to cloth napkins, and handkerchiefs instead of Kleenex, and again, it’s perfectly fine and you wonder why we all became indoctrinated in believing we needed anything but in the first place. Of course, for t.p. there’s not really another option except paper, but yay for 100% recycled. Good luck!
Posted on March 11th, 2009 at 3:00 am
Triumph! I hope he makes the move to LA.
You know, if they make cloth diapers and cloth wipes for babies, maybe you could wipe with prefold diapers and wash them accordingly. And not to be even more gross, but the term "on the rag" came about for a reason. One of the cloth diaper companies makes reusable pads.
Posted on March 11th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Two things:
1. "Build a better mouse trap" applies here. If green companies can make eco-friendly paper products, and make them cheaper than non-eco-friendly, the world will switch pretty quick. Of course, advertising helps too.
2. At the risk of "where did a guy find something like this," there is a non-paper, non-cloth alternative for that time of the month: http://www.divacup.com/