Why It Matters What You Flush Down The Toilet

It’s a terrifying feeling when you go to grab the toilet paper and there’s nothing left on the roll. We’ve all been there. To avoid this catastrophe we stockpile a supply—and it’s killing our forests. We have to reconcile our need for cleanliness and our need for sustainable choices. 

Believe it or not, toilet paper wasn’t even a thing until the turn of the 20th century. So how did toilet paper go from non-existent to bathroom necessity? Good old fashioned marketing.  Just turn on the t.v. and you’ll catch commercials that tell us our t.p. has to be soft, it has to be jumbo, and it has to be cheap—in part because we use so much of it. The U.S. has the highest rate of toilet paper consumption in the world (1). 

Toilet paper companies know this and have used it to their advantage. These big companies have been giving us less and less toilet paper but charging the same price (2). There are a few different ways they’ve gotten away with this.

1. Their rolls have fewer sheets.
2. The sheet size is thinner or smaller.
3. The number of rolls in a value pack has gone down.

So not only are major toilet paper companies harming the environment—but our wallets too.

Read on to arm yourself with the facts so you can invest in better choices. 

Is Toilet Paper Bad For The Environment? 

If you’re buying toilet paper based on the catchiness of its commercial, the answer is yes. The biggest names in toilet paper use virgin pulp (paper material made from freshly logged trees). A large part of the virgin pulp used for tissue products comes from the Canadian Boreal Forest. The boreal forest of Canada is capable of removing carbon dioxide equal to the emissions of 24 million cars. So the environmental impact of toilet paper is serious. 

The environmental impact of virgin toilet paper is harmful at every level of production. Not only is deforestation an issue when the trees are cut down for virgin pulp, but the production process also releases 3 times the carbon as the production of other toilet paper types. Mainstream toilet paper brands use bleach during the production process—which not only harms the folks who have to make our toilet paper but also our food supply when it’s flushed into our waterways. (3) 

In recent years, there have been major strides in toilet paper alternatives. Recycled toilet paper has made its way onto shelves—and so have toilet papers made from hemp, wheat straw, and bamboo. 

What Is Bamboo Toilet Paper? 

There are a lot of companies that have adopted bamboo as their alternative material of choice. And for good reason. It’s a fast-growing plant that uses fewer resources to grow and can easily be made into paper products. 

According to one study, bamboo paper products create 30 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than virgin pulp products (3). If the only change you made toward sustainability was switching to bamboo toilet paper, you would still be making huge strides. 

At first glance, it seems like everyone has jumped on the bamboo trend. And you can assume that’s a good thing. But the truth is not every bamboo source is made equal. Sometimes unprotected forests are cut down just to make way for bamboo. That’s why it’s so important to find a bamboo toilet paper that is sourced from protected forests. Otherwise, it’s just greenwashing.

What Is Recycled Toilet Paper Made Out Of? 

This alternative toilet paper is made from post-consumer recycled paper, pre-consumer recycled paper, or a mix of both. Pre-consumer recycled paper is manufacturing waste from other wood products that have been made from virgin wood. This reduces the strain on our forests but it doesn’t provide the same environmental benefits that post-consumer recycled paper does. Reusing and repurposing materials lowers the environmental impact of your toilet paper (3). 

There’s only one catch to recycled toilet paper. Comfort. We’ve all had an uncomfortable run-in with recycled toilet paper—most likely in a public bathroom someplace. And while it’s not the biggest problem in the grand scheme of things (we are talking global climate change, here) it is an obstacle for consumers in the U.S. 

The softness of our toilet paper has become our biggest priority. Consumers can’t quite make the leap to the scratchy recycled stuff. When it comes to the comfort of recycled toilet paper, there is a big difference from brand to brand. 

Conclusion

The deforestation and pollution that these big toilet paper companies are causing aren’t even necessary. The technology for environmentally friendly paper products is all there—they just choose not to use it. 

There is no denying the environmental impact of toilet paper. But we also can’t deny that consumers have gotten used to a certain level of comfort and cleanliness in their bathroom experience. What good is a sustainable product if it doesn’t appeal to consumers as the better option? And recycled toilet paper, hemp toilet paper, and bamboo toilet paper are all great options. It’s getting easier to make better choices for our planet. Companies are creating unique ways to make the everyday products we use in a sustainable way. 

The important thing is that we empower consumers to make sustainable choices. Education is a huge marketing asset for sustainable brands.  Consumers should know that the toilet paper they bring home can have a big impact on our forests—and that we need these forests to combat climate change. The home isn’t the only place we can make these changes. If you work in an office or go to a school, you can make sure the toilet paper you’re using isn’t from virgin pulp. Suggest recycled toilet paper or toilet paper made from an alternative material—like hemp or bamboo. No change is too small. 

Sources

1. https://www.statista.com/chart/15676/cmo-toilet-paper-consumption/
2. https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2015/08/the-dirty-little-secrets-of-toilet-paper/index.htm
3. https://www.nrdc.org/resources/issue-tissue-how-americans-are-flushing-forests-down-toilet