I'm Michele's husband, and I use a lot of paper towels. Been doing it for years. Mostly in the kitchen.
Water on the counter? Two paper towels.
Smart Balance on a knife I'm about to wash? Rip off a couple paper towels.
Stove top covered with crumbs and stuff and I need to make some mac 'n' cheese for DJ? Mucho paper towels.
I've stopped using them to dry dishes, though. For that I use cloth dish towels.
Why do I use paper towels so doggone much? Partly because it's convenient, partly because I'm lazy.
Should I use fewer paper towels? Probably.
But I do a lotta sustainable stuff -- I never fertilize the lawn, I often ride my bike to work and most of my clothes are second-hand.
And I have to draw the line somewhere. I do. I'm not gonna devote my entire life to living as nonimpactfully as possible. That'd make me more nuts than I already am. And, as Michele will tell you, I need to be less nuts.
So here's what I propose --
I will try to stop using so many paper towels. I'll use dish towels when possible. That's a change I can make because using paper towels isn't particularly important to me.
And I submit that the most fruitful way to try to get average folks to live sustainably is to encourage them to change stuff that doesn't matter that much to them. No, it's not gonna fix all the problems, but it's a start.
2 comments:
I'm a strong proponent of using less disposable stuff. We made the switch away from paper towels a few years back. The way we did it was to substitute washcloths for the paper towels. Being lazy really has nothing to do with it, because a lazy person doesn't usually clean up messes that much. It is really all about habit. If you think you want to use less paper towels, put them under your sink where it is harder to get to them. That way you have to think about it more and decide that what you are doing really needs a paper towel more than a cloth. I use them to clean up broken glass, the small shards. If you have a stack of cheap washcloths, say 2 dozen, you will always have one handy. They can be rinsed out and reused. I applaud your effort to reduce your usage. Hope this helps you do that:-)
Cindy in FL
I have five thousand dishrags on hand and I use them for everything I'd use a paper towel for. I have a dedicated step-on can in the kitchen where I throw the used ones. When this fills up, I throw them in the washer on hot with plenty of environmentally destructive bleach. This may or may not be better for Gaia than Bounty, but one thing it definitely is is less of a hassle than using paper towels. This is because it translates to fewer trips to the grocery store. I hate the grocery store. I hate being in Publix like I hate an itchy rash. I only go there once every fortnight to purchase a dumpster-sized package of Scott terlit paper (not an environmentally sound choice, either, but way less of a hassle than the recycled ones that have about six sheets per roll).
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