Greener Lifestyles And The Great Toilet Paper Debate
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What is the newest anathema among those who live greener lifestyles? It is toilet paper. Yes, toilet paper is the cause of a lot fervor and debate of late. There are two arguments surrounding toilet paper, one is those super soft premium rolls; because they are made by chopping down and grinding up trees. Critics of these premium toilet papers want you to live greener lifestyles by using toilet paper that is made from recycled paper products like the Europeans do. According to a recent article in the Washington Post “big toilet-paper makers say that they’ve taken steps to become more Earth-friendly but that their customers still want the soft stuff, so they’re still selling it.” This seems incongruent with the current eco-friendly climate; people are trying very hard to live greener lifestyles but it would seem their bums are off limits. So why can’t North American’s make the same simple changes that Europeans have? Is it because we are unwilling to purchase anything that does not make us happy and, more importantly, feel good in a very sensitive region?
A question raised in an article in the Post asked “at what price is softness?” said Tim Spring, chief executive of Marcal Manufacturing; a New Jersey paper maker that is trying to persuade customers to try 100 percent recycled paper. “Should I contribute to clear-cutting and deforestation because the big [marketing] machine has told me that softness is important?” The article also explained the difference between the recycled and virgin (from freshly cut trees) fibers. “The reason for this fight lies in toilet-paper engineering. Each sheet is a web of wood fibers, and fibers from old trees are longer, which produces a smoother and more supple web. Fibers made from recycled paper — in this case magazines, newspapers or computer printouts — are shorter. The web often is rougher.”
Rougher recycled toilet paper is popularly used in restaurants, offices, hospitals etc… and accounts for 75% of that market; where as recycled paper accounts for only 5% of the home market.
The second debate is about how much of the soft stuff we use. If everyone used less of the soft toilet paper it would not be quite as bad, yes trees would still be being chopped down but a much slower rate. The point of extra-thick and super soft paper is not just to make your rear end happy; but also so you use less of it. In actuality people are using just as much of the soft stuff as they did with its rougher counterpart; thus, this turns into a lot of waste.
I know many people love to use square after square of their favorite plush bathroom tissue but the only way to protect our forests in South America, Canada and the Southern USA is to change our habits and try to live greener lifestyles. In closing, change is difficult - some are easier to make than others. Switching to a stainless steel reusable water bottle or carrying your reusable bag into the grocery store is easily done with no bother. Changing something as personal as toilet paper…well that just may be a little rougher (pun intended).
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