With the paper towel industry ramping up its funding of anti-hand dryer PR campaigns
Interestingly the paper industry is willing to throw hundreds of millions of dollars at trying to convince people paper is the best for a whole host of activities, trying to pull on the emotions of the consumer, using divert tactics without a care for the much bigger issues, cost and climate change.
When we look at the below, it’s clear to see why they are concerned that the public is turning to more sustainable options.
Paper Towels cannot be recycled
Paper towels are contaminated waste therefore they all have to end up in landfill.
Although paper towels can be made from previously recycled paper, they are usually the last paper product to be made in the chain. This means that the paper they are made from has been recycled up to seven times before. The fibers are just too short in paper towels to be used again.
There are also reports that major paper manufacturers are not using recycled paper to make their paper products, as the shear demand for means virgin trees are having to be felled to keep up due to recycled paper stocks being limited.
The average paper towel generates more CO2 per dry than other methods.
Life Cycle analysis shows that the effects of felling raw materials, transportation, manufacturing, packaging, storage on a constant loop, significantly produces a lot of CO2 into the atmosphere.
Also, to make one ton of paper towels, 17 trees are cut down and 20,000 gallons of water are consumed and polluted.
The decay of paper products and landfill`s in general produce methane gas which is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide, therefore a real threat to global warming. They are also often put in plastic bags, creating further downstream problems in the recycling process.
The paper industry has put profit before the environment for the last 100 years. We also encourage people to take a look at the possibilities of bamboo as a much more sustainable source of paper rather than current methods of felling trees.
Paper Towels are one of the biggest causes of blocked drains
We are constantly told by facilities managers that they are switching to low-maintenance hand dryers because they are fed up of towels blocking the toilets. The fibers don’t break down like tissue and blockages are inevitable.
Toilet paper has a significant impact on the environment
From the time of cutting down the trees to the process of chemical synthesis and the final waste, the use of paper is very harmful to the environment.
These include:
1 Deforestation
2 Transport of logs
3 Use more water
4 Chemical Synthesis Proposals
5 Shipping and Extensions
6 Trash
7 Expires
Toilet paper is often left in the landfill and burned.
Paper towels cost on average 95% more than hand dryers
When comparing energy efficient hand dryers with paper towel costs, the savings can be massive.
Quick example:
Energy efficient hand dryer (Dyson Hand Dryer) Dry time: 14 seconds
Phnom Penh Electric Charge 1kw = 0.18$
Energy per dry: 0.0054 kwh
Cost per 100 dries 1 day: 0.54kwh = 0.097$
Cost per 365 day: 197.1kwh = 35.48$
Carbon production Per Dry: 3.3 g/CO2
Carbon production Per Day: 0.33 Kg/CO2
Carbon production Per Year: 124 kg/CO2
Paper towels
Paper towels: on average, 2 taken per dry
Cost per paper towel: 200pcs = 1$
Cost per 100 dries 1 day: 200pcs = 1$
Cost per 365 day: 73,000pcs = 365$
Carbon production Per Dry: 17.1 g/CO2
Carbon production Per Day: 1.71 kg/CO2
Carbon production: 624 Kg/CO2
Saving: 330$ per year A 95% saving!
To put into context:
An office of 25 people
Number of toilet visits a year: 26,000 (each person using the bathroom 4 times a day 260 days a year)
| Annual cost | Annual carbon production |
Paper Towels | 234 $ | 442 Kg/CO2 |
Hand Dryer | 25.22 $ | 78 Kg/CO2 |
