Today's Green Tip: Use Cloth Napkins, it's so Easy!

You can plan to use pretty cloth napkins instead of paper towels
at your lunch and dinner table today. You can even use them more than once before washing by keeping them folded on place mats between meals, (so long as the meal wasn't too messy that time!)
 Well, at least it's a step in the right direction..:)..Why?

According to Natural Resources Defense Council “the paper and pulp industry may contribute to more global and local environmental problems than any industry in the world.” Here is a quick summary of some of the issues:
 


Paper Manufacturing is Environmentally Harsh:

• It uses a lot of timber destroying wildlife habitat.
• It’s a major generator of water and air pollution including dioxins and other cancer-causing chemicals.
• The industry is the third largest industrial emitter of global warming gasses.
  

How do we use tissue paper?

Our usage of tissue falls mainly into four categories; toilet paper, paper towels, facial tissue and napkins. The chart at the left shows the breakdown of use in North America. With some simple behavior changes we can significantly reduce usage for paper towels, napkins and facial tissue. For remaining use, buying tissue products made from 100% recycled paper will help further. Together these will actually make a big environmental impact.


What if we used eco-friendly tissue paper habits?

By changing to eco-friendly habits we can reduce our tissue usage to Western Europe and Japan levels. That means cutting use from 50 pounds to 33 pounds per person each year. If you also bought only 100% recycled products for the remaining use, a household of four people will save the environment:

• About 1½ live trees per year.
• Cut water and energy used in manufacturing by more than half.
• Eliminate the toxic dioxin used for pulp bleaching.
• Reduce local sewer tissue waste and landfill waste.
  

House Smart Home Improvements continues to bring you simple, useful information about what you can do to go green. We install energy-efficient windows, doors and install furnaces and heat pumps. Call the pros, call House Smart Home Improvements today 604-585-2020
http://www.housesmarthomeimprovements.com