Paper towels are commonly used in every house. There are a lot of uses of paper towels such as cleaning spills, drying hands, wiping down surfaces, cleaning drawers and many others. But do you know what paper towels are made of?
Paper towels are usually made of fresh wood pulp. The trees are cut for this production process to produce thicker paper towels. No doubt, paper towels are a must have for every home, but this process can cause deforestation that will lead to climate change. However, we must know what are the ways to make these indispensable items from purely recycled stuff. Recycled paper towels will be just as useful as non-recycled paper towels. Recycled paper towels will reduce the use of wood pulp and make them an eco-friendly alternative. These zero waste paper towels can be soft and absorbent, making them a perfect choice for cleaning and drying purposes.
However, producing a new product needs years of hard work and research before making something useful and eco-friendly. Yet, new inventions sometimes hit the market so fast. Recycled paper towels are most eco-friendly and a lot of people like to use them in place of usual paper towels for the betterment of the environment.
Why paper towels can’t be recycled?
It is mostly asked can you recycle paper towels. Though paper towels can be made from recycled items, it is hard to recycle paper towels. It is because the towels are made by the mixture of wood, paper, and cardboard products which weakens their natural fibers. It makes it very difficult to recycle them. Paper towels also go through severe chemical treatments before coming in proper shape. Harsh additives for example softeners, resins, and glues are mostly used to provide good texture, strength and absorption into the paper towels. To make them more attractive and brighter, colors and bleach is also used in the production process. These attributes make them fragile and even new paper towels can’t be recycled.
Apart from the colored ones, even plain or unbleached paper towels are not good for recycling purposes. However, paper towels are used for the particular purpose of cleaning messes and if you use towels or dusters, they will remain contaminated with food, residue or cleaning chemicals if you don’t wash them immediately. But paper towels are such useful household items because you use them and discard them when they are dirty. There are some companies who are experimenting with resin formulas to improve the recycling ability of paper towels. However, these paper towels are not publicly available yet.
The use of paper towels can be more eco-friendly if you use paper towels made from 100 percent recycled paper. Although paper towels made from recycled items can’t be recycled again, it can reduce the practice of cutting trees to create disposable paper towels made from recycled materials. So, it is better to use paper towels made with recycled material to make them environment friendly.
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How to reduce paper towel waste?
Though paper towels are very useful for every household task, they make a huge pile of waste that can’t be recycled. The best way to reduce the paper towel waste is to decrease its use or even stop using it. You can use one towel for multiple purposes and avoid using more towels for your needs. If you are using it for drying purposes, you can hang them to dry and use them again. When you reuse paper towels, it means you can reduce paper towel waste in the long run. You can cut the paper towels in smaller pieces to use them for multiple purposes. Try to choose unbleached brown paper towels that can be composted. If you use them only for food, they can be added to the recycle bin. Sometimes, some plant-based sprays and non-toxic cleansers still allow recycling. However, the best way is to use paper towels when actually necessary. When you use less paper towels, it will surely mean reduced waste.
Unbleached compostable paper towels
Linen, cotton, or plant-based materials are most recommended for towels. However, for paper towels, there are many eco-friendly options. Brown paper towels are most recommended because they are made from recycled unbleached kraft paper. Though you cannot recycle them, you can add them in the compost bin.
Unbleached compostable paper towels are made purely from recycled paper and mostly contain a minimum of eighty percent recycled content. These paper towels do not include any additional inks, aromas and dyes. These eco-friendly paper towels can reduce environmental pollution and can be economical as well.
Using sustainable paper towels can be beneficial in many ways:
- It decreases the amount of trash going to landfills. If you do not recycle or dispose of paper products, they will take several years to decompose which leads to a global waste crisis. Recycled towels will help to decrease the amount of that waste.
- Sustainable paper towels are harmful for natural resources. Trees are a natural source for oxygen which is indispensable for human beings. If you use recycled paper towels, it will protect forests by the decreased need of more material.
- If you use sustainable paper towels, it will help reduce gas emissions. Paper products’ production is energy-intensive and causes climate change. Using zero waste paper towels will help reduce the required energy for production purposes.
- It means paper towels compostable will make your environment greener and pleasant.
So, it is always recommended to use recycled paper towels to save nature. They serve the same purpose as conventional paper towels and can be cost effective.
Reasons why you can’t recycle paper towels?
People usually wonder can you compost paper towels. Recycling paper towels is not as beneficial as it seems. There are many reasons you cannot recycle paper towels;
Recycled paper towels aren’t truly sustainable
A lot of eco-conscious questions if paper towels are more sustainable than regular hand dryers. The manufacturers mostly focus on advertising sustainably made paper towels with recycled paper. Recycled paper towels sound like an environmentally friendly product. However, the environmental impact of producing recycled paper towels is almost equivalent to that of regular paper towels. Compost paper towels means regular paper towels made from recycled paper. The paper fibers in towels are not suitable for reusing for new paper towels or other paper products. It means each used paper towel will increase the landfill harming the environment. Instead, you can use hand dryers intended to be environment friendly.
Recycled towels can harbor harmful bacteria
It is also asked should you recycle paper towels. It is said that recycled paper towels can cause harmful bacteria growth. Moist environments such as washrooms are ideal for bacteria growth and due to paper towels, sanitation is quite impossible. It can cause several sanitary and health issues. Hand dryers provide a touchless and speedy drying experience to avoid contact with any contaminated surfaces.
Recycling facilities unable to process paper towels
It is a common question: can you recycle used paper towels? used paper towels are contaminated with body fluids, oils, chemicals, and food residue which makes recycling quite impossible. The fibers are too small in paper towels making it impossible to repurpose the material. Recycling facilities require help to process these filthy paper towels, resulting in a deeper carbon footprint and more waste. On the other hand, hand dryers produce zero waste and last for years.
Paper towels contribute to excessive waste
Paper towels are used frequently in every household. Every home used hundreds of paper towels every month. The constant disposal of paper towels adds up to waste leading to landfills and damaging natural resources. You can reduce the waste by using hand dryers and decreasing the environmental damage.
FAQs
Q: Are paper towels more sustainable than air dryers?
Ans: No, hand dryers are more sustainable due to their power efficiency and longer life cycle. On the other hand, paper towels create solid waste when you use and dispose of them which leads to landfilling.
Q: Are recycled towels safe?
Ans:Recycled towels are not safe because they can easily catch harmful bacteria. Hand dryers provide touchless experience to help avoid touching any contaminated surfaces.
Q: Why can’t paper towels be recycled?
Ans: Paper towels are made of very small fibers that are too small to be recycled. At the same time, used paper towels contain a lot of body fluids, chemicals, oils, and food residue which can contaminate the paper during the recycling process.
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