What do you refuse to do for the environment?

[kenny]

I refuse to give up my paper towels.
There's just something nice about using something you know is clean and throwing the gunk away!

If I transfer the gunk to a cloth I have to rinse and wring out the cloth, which gets some gunk on my hands so I have to wash them.
Still, some gunk residue will remain in the cloth and breed bacteria.
Ever smell a kitchen cloth/sponge after a few days?
Eventually the cloth has to be washed using water, electricity, and gas, and putting more soap down the drain.

Even if someone (not the paper towel industry) did an detailed analysis of all the environmental pros and cons, and paper towels were proven to do more harm, I still wouldn't give them up.
So go ahead and sue me.

I do so many other green things I don't feel too guilty about this one.

What non-green habit do you refuse to give up?

 

[MissStepcut]

***TMI WARNING**** GENTLEMEN MAY NOT WANT TO READ FURTHER *****

Switch from tampons to any cup-style device. Tried it, nope nope nope, not for me.

 

[TooPatient]

Kenny -- around here we can toss paper towels in our compost/yard-waste bin for collection. Even without that, I'm with you on this one. What's worse is that you can't just wash kitchen cleaning towels with anything -- they need their own load in the laundry to prevent any potential ickiness going to/from them and they have to be run at least a couple of times a week to prevent growth of nasty stuff.


I won't not flush the toilet.

I won't use CFL's in the house. About 50% of all our indoor lights are LED. The rest are the standard old incandescent. (we're working at switching over the rest as better LEDs become available and prices drop)

 

[kenny]

I confess I love to hose down my driveway and front sidewalk.
Sweeping raises and leaves a lot of dust.

Instead of pointing the water so it flows down the driveway, I direct the water sideways into the grass (which is kept yellow BTW).
No water makes it down into the street, but even doing what I'm doing is against the rules of my city.
Neighbors can report me and I can get fined.

I wonder what the city would say if I told them we use less water than all the houses that have adults and kids.

TOO BAD!

 

[vc10um]

kenny, we won't give up our paper towels, either...but we've switched to using a recycled product. It still absorbs really well (we tested a few brands and ended up liking Seventh Generation the best) and we feel much less guilty!

I won't stop flying or driving. But I do drive a relatively fuel-efficient vehicle and DH and I are looking into taking Amtrak on a few trips this year instead of flying. But sometimes, you just gotta fly!

 

[ame]

Ill go along with that Paper Towel thing too. And add in the "I leave lights on in rooms I am not in if it's dark and I am home alone". I know it pisses DH off to no end, but dammit, my house is creepy!

 

[kelpie]

I refuse to ever compromise on TP! None of that post consumer recycled sandpaper. You should see the amount of Charmin I brought to Africa. The highest end TP (from UK) is like $2.50 a roll and it is equivalent of a U.S. generic store brand. OMG, you can judge a culture by it's TP!

 

[partgypsy]

When I have a birthday party for my kids I use disposable everything (plates, cups, napkins, serviceware) and not even the eco friendly options but the ones that are the brightly colored theme packs. It goes against what we do normally but the kids like it and it give me a break. I'm sure there is more but that was the one I had to get off my chest!

 

[EricaR]

I'm another that hoses down my patio. I've got pretty severe asthma and sweeping is out and out dangerous to me. I also direct the water to the plants along the edges.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I did not use washable diapers.

I planned to pre-kids. But then reality hit.

I do feel bad about it. But not bad enough to switch I guess.

 

[zoebartlett]

I won't give up paper towels or paper napkins. I also like using cleaning wipes instead of using spray cleaner and a sponge.

 

[Lottie]

I also use disposable nappies/diapers, not to mention all the wet wipes we go through - could not cope without wetwipes. And I always sleep with the landing light on. And I really, really love a big super deep bath after a particuarly stressful day.

 

[Haven]

There are so many things we refuse to do for the environment.

We drive cars, so we refuse to rearrange our lifestyle to eliminate the need for automobiles.
We fly on planes when we travel, so we refuse to give up those experiences for the sake of the environment.
We use paper towels to clean up the animals' messes.

It's difficult to think of where this list could end!

We don't grow our own food.
We use a dishwasher.
We don't use grey water when we really could.
We use indoor plumbing.

 

[Miss Sparkly]

***TMI WARNING**** GENTLEMEN MAY NOT WANT TO READ FURTHER *****

Switch from tampons to any cup-style device. Tried it, nope nope nope, not for me.

I refuse to give up my plastic applicator tampons. They're so much easier than the cardboard!

Paper towels, paper plates, paper bowls and paper cups. Saves time with dishes (even though it's just DH and I) and a lot of money on water.

 

[ame]

cup-style device. Tried it, nope nope nope, not for me.

I won't even consider trying it.

 

[lyra]

We've cut down drastically on the paper towels, and technically they go in our city compost bucket anyway. I feel guilty about pretty much everything that actually ends up in the garbage. Why do they even make styrofoam anymore and why do take out restaurants use it instead of recyclable materials? I hate that we have too much of it.

I still have a car even though I rarely drive anywhere. Does that count?

I try to be as green as possible. I think that's the main point, if everyone does what they can, there is improvement.

 

[Alistra]

Overall I strive to be an eco friendly person. However, when it is really hot outside I turn on our central AC. I have friends who won't, or who say they feel guilty. I don't do well when it is really hot out, so I refuse to feel guilty about this one!

 

[ksinger]

I refuse to feel guilty about living in the world I was born into and whose shape and strictures I had no say in.

There really is whole lotta something approaching self-loathing in these environmental threads. Lots of something very like confession and apology, and shame.

I wonder when someone is going to suggest Soylent Green....

 

[MissStepcut]

I refuse to feel guilty about living in the world I was born into and whose shape and strictures I had no say in.

There really is whole lotta something approaching self-loathing in these environmental threads. Lots of something very like confession and apology, and shame.

I wonder when someone is going to suggest Soylent Green....

I think in many ways we needed to harm the environment to become "civilized." That doesn't mean we have to stay on that path now. A lot of the things we're doing are making people sick. We can reduce asthma rates in Chicago, children's blood lead level, mercury in the air of pregnant women (which causes reduced IQ of their children)... and there's no reason not to. You don't have to "feel guilty" to change your behavior. You can simply want the best future for our species.

 

[megumic]

***TMI WARNING**** GENTLEMEN MAY NOT WANT TO READ FURTHER *****

Switch from tampons to any cup-style device. Tried it, nope nope nope, not for me.

Ditto. However, I did switch to applicator free organic cotton tampons which have much less packaging and are better for the environment, let alone your body. Tampax and other brands can have rayon and/or polyester in them, plus those nasty fragrances. I buy them in bulk on Amazon about once per year and always ahve a supply.

 

[kenny]

Couldn't ladies bring their used unmentionable plastic tube thingies to fast food restaurants for reuse as straws?

 

[centralsquare]

cup-style device. Tried it, nope nope nope, not for me.

I won't even consider trying it.

I haven't even heard of that! I don't even think I want to know about it.

 

[centralsquare]

Couldn't ladies bring their used unmentionable plastic tube thingies to fast food restaurants for reuse as straws?

I think I'd rather just give up straws, or beverages.

 

[Gypsy]

So many things.

Toilet paper. I too like the Charmin. This is the one I feel guiltiest about.
Wet wipes. I don't know how I ever lived without them.
Paper towels here too.
Anything feminine hygiene related is a hell no, and without any guilt.
Give up AC... I'd rather give up my husband. NO. I would move to a cooler climate though if I could do it feasibly (job relocation).


I don't drive often at all, unless it's for work. And as I live in land of crap public transportation not driving isn't an option. But I would carpool if I could.

 

[Gypsy]

Couldn't ladies bring their used unmentionable plastic tube thingies to fast food restaurants for reuse as straws?

I think I'd rather just give up straws, or beverages.

Or restaurants. Or well... eating.

 

[galeteia]

Any recycled/alternative to paper products involving my ladybits, like TP or pads. Reusable pads? No thanks. Diva cups and whatnot are something my IUD will not tolerate sharing space with.

Things that I will do for the environment:
I will use recycled paper products for all sorts of things, buy biodegradable cleaning products like dishsoap, etc, and never wash in anything but cold water. I also spend my money on sustainable food production, because voting with my wallet will not only give me better tasting eggs, it will also encourage humane treatment of the animals who provide me with food. I walk to work. I turn off lights. I use a fan to cool off instead of cranking our AC to 'arctic' because we live in Texas. I buy veggies from local farmer's markets and from grocery stores that carry local and label non-local produce, to reduce demand for produce with a nasty carbon footprint due to transportation over long distances.

But I will not scrimp on paper products destined for tender nether regions. Never, never I say!

 

[ame]

cup-style device. Tried it, nope nope nope, not for me.

I won't even consider trying it.

I haven't even heard of that! I don't even think I want to know about it.

You don't. lol I gag at the whole "process" as it is, as childish as that sounds, I cannot deal with all that. It's gross. But when I heard about that thing...I actually puked in my mouth a little.

 

[davi_el_mejor]

I will not let it "mellow" GROSS

 

[Guilty Pleasure]

feminine hygiene products. I do not consider myself quite there yet in terms of being "green," but I try to make small changes as I learn new ways to reduce and reuse and save the planet. This is the only one I simply will not consider.

 

[merilenda]

I couldn't give up paper towels either. The other thing I absolutely refuse to do is "let it mellow" in the toilet. I'm grossed out by anything being in the toilet, and it will be flushed after each and every usage.