Give up using toilet paper, and save the planet!
People who are conscious about global warming, and know exactly how our pursuit for comforts is adding on to the problem, usually frown at those driving around town in SUVs, but even they would find it hard to believe that toilet paper is contributing even more to the problem than those fuel-guzzling cars! Yes, believe it or not, in order to save the planet Americans and people around the world will have to learn to clean their derriere with something other than the rolls of soft, white toilet paper! What’s more, in US, a 3% excise tax on toilet paper is being proposed under the Water Resources Protection Act too, as the tissues end up in waste water and need treatment by sewage treatment plants!
Leaving aside clay and stone, sponges and salt water, people in USA began to wipe their behinds with paper about 150 years ago, and today, perhaps as a result of globalisation, people around the world have begun to emulate the Americans. So, while an average American uses 57 squares a day and 50 pounds of toilet paper in a year, the real growth is being experienced in developing countries. But the cost of using tissue paper is immeasurable, as apart from tree farms and previously logged second-growth farms, they are being made from the centuries old Canadian boreal forests. While toilet paper made from recycled fibres is available, people choose to not use them as these are coarse, and in order to keep enjoying the softer, fluffier paper, we’re happily trading our wild forests, which are incredibly important for maintaining the ecological balance – for removing greenhouse gases from the air, and for providing habitat and water purification systems to thousands of species. These finer rolls of paper also require more water and more toxic chlorine bleaches for their manufacture.
Americans, reportedly, are totally averse to switching from the softer to coarser environment friendly wipes.
While in European and Latin America about 20% of the toilet paper rolls sold have recycled content, only 2% of the 36.5 billion rolls of toilet paper sold in US are completely composed of recycled fibres. Says NRI Ruchika Chawla, “From the time Americans are born, wiping is the only concept known to them for cleansing themselves. Washing is not introduced in childhood as it’s in India, so although the consequences are grave, Americans can’t do without toilet paper. I believe they’ll recycle more cans to make up for the damage, but not give up their toilet paper!”
While countries keep haggling over the Kyoto Protocol, we as concerned and responsible citizens need to keep track of our carbon footprint ourselves. It would take very little effort from Indians to forego the roll and opt for water bidets, which use a jet of water to clean, especially since the use of water has so far dominated the toilet habits of Indians. Hopefully, Americans too will discover the utility of the bidet and perhaps limit their use of tissue paper only to dry off. Seventh Generation, producers of recycled toilet paper, estimates that one million trees could be saved if every US household substitutes just one packet of the soft napkins with 100% recycled ones. Clearly, flushing away old habits is the way forward…
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009
People who are conscious about global warming, and know exactly how our pursuit for comforts is adding on to the problem, usually frown at those driving around town in SUVs, but even they would find it hard to believe that toilet paper is contributing even more to the problem than those fuel-guzzling cars! Yes, believe it or not, in order to save the planet Americans and people around the world will have to learn to clean their derriere with something other than the rolls of soft, white toilet paper! What’s more, in US, a 3% excise tax on toilet paper is being proposed under the Water Resources Protection Act too, as the tissues end up in waste water and need treatment by sewage treatment plants!
Leaving aside clay and stone, sponges and salt water, people in USA began to wipe their behinds with paper about 150 years ago, and today, perhaps as a result of globalisation, people around the world have begun to emulate the Americans. So, while an average American uses 57 squares a day and 50 pounds of toilet paper in a year, the real growth is being experienced in developing countries. But the cost of using tissue paper is immeasurable, as apart from tree farms and previously logged second-growth farms, they are being made from the centuries old Canadian boreal forests. While toilet paper made from recycled fibres is available, people choose to not use them as these are coarse, and in order to keep enjoying the softer, fluffier paper, we’re happily trading our wild forests, which are incredibly important for maintaining the ecological balance – for removing greenhouse gases from the air, and for providing habitat and water purification systems to thousands of species. These finer rolls of paper also require more water and more toxic chlorine bleaches for their manufacture.
Americans, reportedly, are totally averse to switching from the softer to coarser environment friendly wipes.
While in European and Latin America about 20% of the toilet paper rolls sold have recycled content, only 2% of the 36.5 billion rolls of toilet paper sold in US are completely composed of recycled fibres. Says NRI Ruchika Chawla, “From the time Americans are born, wiping is the only concept known to them for cleansing themselves. Washing is not introduced in childhood as it’s in India, so although the consequences are grave, Americans can’t do without toilet paper. I believe they’ll recycle more cans to make up for the damage, but not give up their toilet paper!”
While countries keep haggling over the Kyoto Protocol, we as concerned and responsible citizens need to keep track of our carbon footprint ourselves. It would take very little effort from Indians to forego the roll and opt for water bidets, which use a jet of water to clean, especially since the use of water has so far dominated the toilet habits of Indians. Hopefully, Americans too will discover the utility of the bidet and perhaps limit their use of tissue paper only to dry off. Seventh Generation, producers of recycled toilet paper, estimates that one million trees could be saved if every US household substitutes just one packet of the soft napkins with 100% recycled ones. Clearly, flushing away old habits is the way forward…
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009
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