Hi All, Master Recycler John Fischer here with KLCC's Living Less Unsustainably
It's not easy to eliminate all the greenhouse gases our consumption of consumer goods puts into the atmosphere. But here are five things you can do to cut back by 90%. It's simple, and can be done by you - today.
Let's start in the trash can. Never dispose of a disposable item after one use. A plastic bag can be used 100 times or more, cutting its impact by 99 percent. Same with aluminum foil, paper bags, and food containers.
Never buy storage containers if you eat cottage cheese or yogurt - they both come with free, re-usable packaging. For even more impact, cut back on, or eliminate dairy from your diet.
The impact from paper towels and Kleenex can be almost completely eliminated by using wash cloths and handkerchiefs - over and over times 100.
Yes, washing takes energy and water, but water - especially in Oregon is relatively plentiful. And the water used to wash foil, plastic bags, and washcloths has a miniscule impact compared to the water and energy used in making and transporting single use items.
One of the worst is the disposable diaper. A strange new planet destroying idea that has become the norm, and is sometimes falsely declared better than cloth because of the water used washing cloth diapers. Making a paper diaper takes five times the water of washing a cloth one. And there are large environmental costs in driving a truck into the woods, cutting a tree, and hauling it to the pulp mill.
Finally, here's something to sit down and think about - the bidet. It's common in other countries, is more sanitary than toilet paper, and can eliminate the use of 36 billion rolls of toilet paper, 250,000 tons of bleach, and 400 billion gallons of water. No, I haven't switched yet, but all my friends who have, say they don't know why they waited so long.
I'm John Fischer with Living Less Unsustainably.
