Little White Square cont.

Who knew there was so much to say about toilet paper!


Did you know that if you flip your toilet paper roll around so that the sheet come from the top, rather than the bottom, you will use less toilet paper? Test it out!

picture from <http://www.toiletpaperhistory.net/toilet-paper-facts/toilet-paper-fun-facts/>

Facts from ToiletPaperHistory.com:
1.) It takes 384 trees to make the toilet paper an average person would use in his or her lifetime.
2.) One-ply will break down faster in a septic system (gross but good to know to avoid issues!)


Facts from The Toilet Paper Encyclopedia:
1.) Tissue manufacturers have one of the highest recycled paper utilization rates in the paper and paperboard industry; over 60% in recent years. That means that tissue manufacturers require 60 tons of recovered paper for every 100 tons of tissue paper produced.


2.) Did you know there is unbleached, environmentally safe toilet paper?
 -Using unbleached toilet paper means the process of making the paper white does not create Dioxin, a harmful bleaching byproduct. Dioxin is one of the most toxic human-made chemical and cannot be broken down once created. It is found throughout the paper manufacturing process and in the products themselves. 

Did you know Soft, fluffy toilet paper, although it may feel better to some, is made from virgin paper from old growth forests. Old growth forests have been around for thousands of years and can never be replaced. They are being clear cut so we can have a product that is used then flushed in a matter of seconds. Is this really worth the environmental impacts for a product that isn't reusable, isn't sustainable and manufacturing process contaminates water?

Fun Fact from Answers.com:
1.) Before paper became the choice bum-cleaning product, people wiped themselves with   wool, lace, hay, seashells, wood shavings, and corn cobs


So what should we take away from these fun facts? Although our personal relationship with toilet paper will remain just that, personal (please! haha) we can make some important changes to better our environment.
We're not saying replace the roll with a corn cob or sea shells, because let's face it, those would be pretty difficult to flush, but we can flip the toilet paper roll to reduce waste. Use recycled, unbleached or oxygen based bleached paper to eliminate harmful chemicals. And reduce use of toilet paper when towels or other reusable products can be used.