Avoid Paper Towels

green | August 6th, 2009 - 12:59 PM

Dish-cloth-package-antibacterialAvoid paper towels as much as possible. Stop using paper towel in the kitchen, opting instead for reusable cloths.Even better if the cloths are cut or torn from old towels or clothing that have seen better days.

Over 90% of American households use paper towels, creating over 3,000 tons of waste each day. Switching to recycled roll paper towels can help cut down on all this trash.
paper towel

If every household in the US replaced one roll of non-recycled paper towels with a roll of 100% recycled paper towels, we would save 864,000 trees and 3.4 million cubic feet of landfill space. For every ton of 100% recycled paper that is bought, about 4000kWh of energy and 7,000 gallons of water are saved. It also avoids releasing 60 lbs of pollutants into the air.

There were times when the paper towel is the best option, especially with pets or someone throws up. Paper towels come into their own and you can throw the whole handful in the trash. But if you have them out in an easy to reach area, you reach for them instead of dish towels that could have sufficed for cleaning up the water splashes after watering the plants.

For those times when required, making the change to recycled paper towels is easy – it’s finding the 100% recycled that can be a little challenging.

Look for paper towels that contain a minimum of 90 percent post-consumer waste.

Roll towels combined with controlled-use dispensers save paper by 25 to 35%, and require less packaging than stand-alone rolls. Avoid folded paper towels, it is too easy to use too many of them.

Choose unbleached paper towels first, process chlorine-free (PCF) second, and elemental chlorine-free (ECF) third.

Choose paper towels that have no added pigments, inks or dyes (say goodbye to that floral printed border).

Select packaging with minimal environmental impact, such as that made of recycled and recyclable materials; imprinted with safe inks; and containing no toxic metals, dyes or inks.

Seek items having the largest amount of product to minimize packaging, for example, high-capacity hardwound roll towels have 800 feet or more. Some brands are puffier and allow for fewer paper towels per roll or napkins per package.

Try using cotton or linen reusable towels as often and possible.

Is There A Greener Quicker Picker-Upper?

Paper Towels and Napkins vs. Cloth

Good choices:

Seventh Generation- 100% post-consumer recycled paper towels ($7.95/4 rolls),

Whole Foods 365 Everyday Value and

Planet 100% recycled (80% by consumers), PCF, are some available.

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