Toilet Paper

This 'sticker' actually came from a campaign to use less paper towel, 

but it would certainly work with toilet paper as well!

Yesterday I read that we as Americans are addicted to fluffy toilet paper -- and fluffy toilet paper is bad for the environment. Yes, apparently it is the fiber taken from standing trees that help give toilet paper that plush feel, and most large manufacturers rely on them. The pulp from one standing eucalyptus tree (a commonly used tree) produces as many as 1,000 rolls of toilet tissue. Americans use and average of 23.6 rolls per capita a year. Hmmmm . . . that's a lot of standing trees.  (source: The New York Times by Leslie Kaufman)

I have to admit, in my pre-green days I was a big proponent of fluffy toilet tissue. It is more pleasant. But since reading Serve God, Save the Planet I have made a habit of buying 100% recycled toilet paper. That was until I saw a large package of 7th Generation for sale at Shaw's for $14.00 for 12 rolls. I'm sorry, but paying over $1 a roll is just too steep! If you are interested in conserving the earth's resources, know that when it comes to many 'green' or 'organic' things, whole foods is actually a better place to shop than your local grocery store -- at least in our area. At Whole Foods, it can cost half that. When you purchase less expensive toilet paper, you know the kind that's reminiscent of fine sandpaper, you are probably purchasing a higher percentage of recycled paper. Look at the label. After a few weeks, you get used to it. Hey, it's a step up from the outhouse days when leaves were used! Right?

As I've mentioned in previous posts, we don't even purchase paper towels. For messy jobs I use less-than-perfect kitchen towels, or rags. For everything else, we use the good old fashioned kitchen towel. 

We generally don't buy facial tissue either. But sometimes I'll have a box in our guest bathroom. I was considering taking my collection of hankies and placing them in a glass jar on the counter of our guest bathroom, with a 'dirty' basket under the vanity. You know, like in those really fancy-shmansy hotels where they supply real hand towels. How do you think that would go over?

The funny thing is, when you don't have disposables at the ready -- you end up making due and using less. So not only do you save the earth's resources, you save money when you don't have to purchase tissues or paper towels!

Not long ago, Crunchy Chicken posted a challenge to use washable rags instead of toilet paper. (Someone had suggested pieces of old t-shirts.) We haven't gone that far here, but it certainly would be one less thing to purchase! 

Be Encouraged! You can make a difference!

When my sister-in-law Tanya recommended the book Serve God Save the Planet to me she commented on one important statement that spoke to her in the book. That was that you can make a difference doing your part to stop living an "unsustainable" life of waste and impact the planet that God entrusted to our care in a positive way. Sometimes it's difficult to feel like you can actually impact anything ... so why bother ... goes the reasoning. But, as many of us do our small parts -- we can make a difference.

Last year when I started this journey (the above) I started recycling with a vengeance. Our town doesn't have a trash service so you either have to go to the dump yourself or hire a service to carry trash and recyclables away. When I noticed our service Waste Tech dumping my carefully collected recyclables into the same section as the trash in their truck -- I started some investigating. They claimed that they took it to a neighboring town and someone went through it and took out the recyclables. I called the man in charge of such things here -- at the Health Department of all things -- and inquired. It's illegal in Massachusetts and in Rehoboth to throw recyclables into the trash. If Waste Tech was doing this, they were breaking the law. I started chatting with everyone I ran into about this matter and found myself speaking to a woman who volunteers at the "trash center" in this neighboring town that Waste Tech was supposedly having their recylceables sorted. So, she picked up the phone and inquired if they offered a sorting service -- come to find out, there is someone who goes through the trash, but that's just to remove big things like coffee makers, computers, etc., not your basic everyday recyclables. So, I called up Waste Tech and discontinued my service, called the head of the Health Department (also an adamant recycler) -- he was going to start investigating (this was the third inquiry he'd gotten on the subject in one week) and asking questions, and I started telling all my neighbors who used Waste Tech. Several of my neighbors as a consequence discontinued their service -- to the point where one of the people at Waste Tech reportedly said "What is with your neighborhood??!"

Last week I noticed some new Waste Tech recycling bins on the side of the road. So, when I saw the Waste Tech trash truck rolling by I pulled into someone's driveway to investigate and question the driver. I asked if they were still throwing the recyclables into the trash truck and the man informed me that they have a Recycling Truck that comes by separately. I explained that I'd never seen such a truck. But, don't you know, a few hours later one drove by my house! It looks shiny and new like it just drove out of the sales lot with freshly painted words on the side that reads "Rehoboth Recycles". Wow. Cool eh?

In another example of how you can impact our world, my husband Victor reported to me that the dudes at the dump told him to throw my carefully collected light bulbs into the "furniture bin" -- which basically means we won't charge you for dumping it but we are not recycling it either. Victor also said that he saw computer monitors and a t.v. set in there. I was astounded. "I've got to call my friend Bob at the Health Department!" I announced. Bob now knows me by name and recognizes me driving down the road. Anyway, I expressed my surprise and concern to him about the light bulbs -- and he too was surprised!! Come to find out there IS a special bin for all of these things but we weren't being told to put these toxic items in it! He was glad to hear about the problem and was going down for a visit to solve it, pronto. Wow!

You too can make an impact. Keep your eyes peeled and your investigative mind working. Making a few calls and chatting with dump truck driver, neighbors and friends is something an at home mom juggling kids, schedules and homemaking can do and have an impact! Be encouraged!

Fruit Trees, Benjamin and Whole Foods

Well, over the weekend I attended a seminar given by the University of Massachusetts Amherst about growing apples organically. We live in a rural development and are regretably restricted from having chickens. When I started lamenting about where we had chosen to settle, I realized that with all of the land we have, what is to stop me from enlarging my garden space and planting some fruit trees? I've already met with a man we've used before to do various plantings to see about enlarging the number of raised beds we have and creating a mixed fruit tree "petite" orchard including apples, peaches, pears, cherries and blueberries that works with our "rural development" neighborhood. Fruit trees are known for being challenging - particularly if you are growing them organically. So, this is what the seminar was all about. Exciting! I'll keep you posted.

Just a word about Benjamin ... I've been meaning to write this for awhile now ...

Do you know that my eight year old brings home to me anything in his lunch box that is recyclable or compostable?! A boy who saw Benjamin not throwing all of the contents of his lunch box away told on Benjamin. Benjamin explained to the teacher that he was bringing these items back to recycle and compost. So, the teacher told the other boy that this was a good thing for the environment. How cool is that?!

Speaking of the enviornment ... when going through the check out line at Whole Foods last week the gal running the registers mentioned in passing that by April Whole Foods will be discontinuing the use of their plastic bags. How fabulous! I hope it's true. Go Whole Foods!!

One small bag of trash . . .

Here is Ripley standing by our one small bag of trash. We have recently made a commitment to become more "green". After discovering that our trash carrier was not recycling, we have decided to head to the dump ourselves. There, we can recycle more things, plus, with our new commitment I've found recycling homes for our "stretch" plastic bags and batteries at Whole Foods. Also, at the Seekonk Department of Works on Rt. 44 (a nearby town) I was able to purchase a compost bin (that sells online for about $100) for a mere $25. So ... with all that, in one entire week we are only generating one small tall kitchen garbage bag worth of trash! Isn't that exciting?? Before our commitment we were generating one bag a day at least -- for a family of four. I have to say I have also made an effort to choose things when I'm shopping that don't have much packaging. I've been getting things from the bulk bins at Whole Foods using paper bags since I can rip those up afterwards and put them into my compost bin. I figure the less toxic plastic I use, the better for everyone -- even if it is recycled. For those of you unfamiliar with composting, you can put organic matter into this bin and after 6 months to a year (depending on your climate and the season you start) you will have beautiful FREE fertilizer for your garden and plants. What can I put in my Compost Bin? You can put all of your fruit and vegetable scraps in there, torn up paper, cardboard, toilet paper rolls, used Kleenex, used paper towel (w/o meat, dairy, chemicals) grass clippings, non-woody garden clippings (woody clippings just take longer to decompose and should go in another pile), hair (if you cut your kids hair, as I do), egg shells, coffee grounds and filters, your old jack-o-lanterns!, and hey, when you unload your fridge of things that you didn't use before they went bad ... at least you can make great dirt out of it ... put it in your compost! Next to the trash can under our sink is the kitchen compost container that Seekonk gave to me along with my $25 composter. Cool eh?