Take the paper-towel free challenge

Feb 01, 2013 12:06 AM by Mary Fetzer

Posted in Living / Going Green / Live Green

cleaning green

Break the paper- towel habit

They're convenient and easy to use, but they're bad for the environment. You don't need an intervention to break the paper-towel habit. These tips will have your paper-towel free in no time.

Paper towels are great for wiping up a spill, cleaning a mirror or drying hands, which is why the average American family uses about two rolls of paper towels every week! So what's the problem?

What's wrong with paper towels?

Trees are cut down. The "paper" in paper towels reminds us that our temporary convenience comes at the price of a tree which provides oxygen, shade, beauty and a home to wild creatures. "Paper towels are made from virgin tree pulp," says Kristin Arrigo, environmental columnist and author of Seasonal Home Repair Checklist: Eco-Alternatives for Maintaining Your Home. "Virgin" paper towels are those which have no post-consumer fiber.
They have a big carbon footprint. Energy, most of which comes from the burning of fossil fuels, is needed to harvest, manufacture, transport and dispose of paper towels. Producing one 8-ounce roll of paper towels releases about 1.25 lbs of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Think about it!
Paper towels end up in landfills. You can't recycle a paper towel — after it has been used and thrown away, it goes to a landfill. In fact, products like paper towels make up more than one-third of landfill trash, according to CarbonRally.com.

"Producing one 8-ounce roll of paper towels releases about 1.25 lbs of carbon dioxide
into the atmosphere."

They're easy to replace

It is possible to maintain a spot-free home without using a single paper towel. "Paper towel alternatives are really rather easy," says professional organizer Alison Kero, owner of ACK! Organizing.

Sponges are an inexpensive, reusable alternative, but they've earned a bad reputation for breeding germs. Not to worry. Stick a damp sponge in the microwave for a couple of minutes or in the next dishwasher cycle to keep it germ free.
Purchase a supply of inexpensive bar mops or dish towels for messes. Rinse them out and let air dry until you're ready to do your next load of laundry.
Rags. Use terry cloth, T-shirts, cloth diapers, flannels and other fabrics from around the house in place of paper towels. If it's stained or torn, then repurpose it!
Flour sack towels (shown on right) are 100% natural cotton and contain no bleach or chemicals, which makes them perfect for lint-free cleaning and shining ($2 and up, Towels and Home).
Reusable microfiber cloths offer another alternative to single-use paper towels. Use them to dust and shine eyeglasses, TVs and computer screens ($70 for 72 cloths, GreenCupboards).
Clean mirrors and windows with sheets of newspapers. They won't leave any lint behind. Now that's recycling!

But what about germs?

Drying hands with paper towels rather than shared hand towels can prevent the spread of germs, but paper towels aren't your only clean-hands option.

"We color code our hand towels by person," says Wendi, mom of two. "Each member of the family has a different color towel to use in the kitchen and bathroom, so the only germs we touch are our own!" Just pick up some colorful inexpensive hand towels at a discount or dollar store. Hang them from the stove handle and towel bars to give family members easy access to their "own" towels.
When you're out and about, consider your public restroom options. Take just as many paper towels as you need to thoroughly wipe your hands — you don't need a two-foot long piece to do the job. Or use the air dryer, if available. It's another way to do your share!

Invest in "green" paper towels

Sometimes the claims about the greening of paper towels can be misleading. "A recycled mention on a product may only be in reference to the cardboard tubing that the paper towels are wrapped around," says Arrigo.

Seventh Generation paper towels

Honest-to-goodness "green" paper towels are few and far between. Check the National Resources Defense Council website for options like these:

Recycled paper towels: Seventh Generation paper towels are made of 100 percent recycled paper and contain no chemicals, dyes or fragrances ($58 for 30 rolls, Amazon).
Washable paper towels: Bamboo grows much more quickly than your average tree. One roll of sustainable, biodegradable Bambooee paper towels replaces up to 60 roles of regular paper towels ($13, Bamboee).

Stop using paper towels today, and by the end of the month you will have done your part to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 5.8 pounds!

More ways to go green at home

10 Easy ways to minimize your household waste
Tips to finally organize your recycling
52 Cheap ways to go green

Tags: eco-friendly home going green

Comments

Comments on "Take the paper-towel free challenge"

Deb, it's great that you compost your used paper towels. If you can't use a rag, used recycled paper towels. It's ridiculous to waste CO2 eating trees grown over years for disposable products used for seconds. New trees may be planted (poorly, in monocropping fashion) by the paper companies, but they don't replace a forest. Go look at a clearcut forest, you'll never see your non-recycled toilet paper and paper towels quite the same way again. Organic cotton rags, natural based detergents, energy and water efficient washers (run off the solar panels on your roof!), and recycled paper towels when you need them. We can do better. And don't eat so many frickin' greasy burgers, bacon, and fries...the stuff will kill 'ya! Burning barrels are illegal in many places, but regardless emit substantial amounts of unfiltered pollution....try recycling or composting your (recycled) paper waste instead! It really isn't that hard to do better, and be better stewards of our resources. Future generations will thank you, and look back on how wasteful we were with disgust!

This is ridiculous!Producing and washing rags may be just as harmful to the environment. Besides paper is made from the waste materials after lumber is produced. New trees are planted constantly. Why are people so ignorant about the production of paper??? I also compost my used paper towels.

So, washing rags and towels doesn't "harm the environment"? What about the manufacture and transportation of said rags and towels? Trees are a renewable resource. No paper company is going to use up all its trees without replanting more to take their place. Should we be judicious in our use of consumables like paper towels? Of course. But the argument that it's SO harmful to the environment is a Chicken Little exaggeration.

A few of the ideas are good. But draining grease off food won't work with reusable cloths mentioned. So, only use paper towels for things that require disposal of the towel. Reuse paper towels you first used to dry your hands for cleaning a countertop or other non-food uses in their secondary and final use.

Oh please. What are we supposed to drain bacon, burgers, fries, etc. on? We burn our paper trash in a barrel so our paper towels don't go into landfills. All this is b.s.

It's scary to think about how many paper towels we use multiplied by millions of other families. Ouch.

Thanks for this. I needed a wake up call. I always get so frustrated when we run out of paper towels, but you're right - you don't really need them. Rags and sponges work just as well and aren't harmful to the environment.