So in a previous blog, I talked about how many trees it takes to wipe a bum in a lifetime (well, really all parts) which turns out to be 384. Three hundred eighty-four trees to wipe our bottoms over a lifetime. So here’s how this plays out. Trees grow, and then we cut them down (even from ‘protected’ sources such as national parks – there’s a real travesty), then we mill them, make paper, and then literally flush those trees down the toilet.
Now, when trees were so abundant, it wasn’t such a big deal. But now, because as a society we have not made smart and sustainable choices around our natural resources, cutting down trees for such a dumb usage is, well, dumb.
Today, we have many more options. So, l embarked on a toileting adventure… I decided to try something different. I purchased toilet paper from a company called, get this!... ‘Who Gives A Crap.’ Truly, that is the name. Isn’t it fabulous?! Anyway, this paper is made from 100% recycled paper or bamboo (which is a fast growing grass). I chose the 100% recycled paper because I want to recycle paper (we have such an abundance of paper to recycle and not enough to do with it) and we can’t export to China like we used to (and there’s a whole other story entirely).
There was no ostensible difference between virgin tree toilet paper and recycled toilet paper except the source. And potentially the cost, but I’m not sure there even was a difference there. The recycled paper is as soft, as absorbent, and lasts as long as a normal roll of virgin tree toilet paper. I ordered the recycled paper online so I didn’t have to go to the grocery store, evaluate the softness and per-sheet/per-100-sheet cost. I went online, found the paper and ordered it. Then I opened the box when it arrived and put it away. Done. Easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy.
The one caveat may be the cost, but that is not guaranteed. For the paper I chose, it turned out to be about $.80/roll. The recycled paper may be slightly more expensive than tree paper (and I’m not even sure about that because I have never calculated a per roll cost of virgin toilet paper), but the other side of that is not cutting down trees, providing an environment we can continue to live in (without enough trees, we are done for, people) AND the other great benefit is, ‘Who Gives A Crap’ donates money to build toilets for people around the globe that don’t have them. That is a win-win-win. Saving the planet while using the toilet?! Trees saved, a habitat for us to live in, people have toilets, (which saves lives because of more sanitary conditions). Bool-yah!
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"The wounds we have inflicted on the earth can be healed… but if it is to be done, it must be done now. Otherwise it may never be done at all."
– Jonathon Porritt
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I’d love to hear if you have used, or thought of switching to, a more sustainable toilet paper. Boy, that goes against what our parents and grandparents used to tell us about no potty talk, right?! If you could, would you choose bamboo paper or 100% recycled paper? Have you tried an alternative to virgin tree toilet paper? If not, is something preventing you?