Environment Friendly Alternatives To Products You Use Every Day
Now more than ever it is important to think about your environmental impact. The world is heading for a climate catastrophe at an alarming rate. Many people are already feeling the effects as freak weather events are now becoming the norm. It can be difficult to figure out the best way to help the environment is. One step is to find some environmentally friendly alternatives to things that you use every day. This article is going to explain some of these good options.
Solid Soap
When thinking about your own environmental impact you need to consider everything you use. Soap and shampoo may last you a while, the amount of plastic waste that you would generate over a lifetime really adds up. Buying solid shampoo is a great solution to this waste. Some people might ask, can you use shampoo bar as body soap? The answer is yes! Although you cannot use soap as shampoo you can use shampoo as soap. Most solid shampoos will do an excellent job of cleaning your body and will leave you smelling excellent. If you are looking for ways to be more green, switching to solid soap or soap flakes is a really great way to reduce your environmental impact.
Toilet Paper
As you are probably aware, the world’s forests are being depleted at an alarming rate. Wood has many uses, one of which is making toilet paper. The problem with this is that humans use too much toilet paper for this to be a sustainable proposition. Using recycled toilet paper is a good option but you should also be able to find bamboo toilet paper as well. Bamboo breaks down a lot quicker than regular toilet paper and is a lot more sustainable. Switching to bamboo toilet paper is a great environmental-friendly choice. If you want to go one step further you can consider installing a low flow toilet to use less water too
Metal Straws
If you are going out for some drinks with some friends, one of the best things you can do is to bring a metal straw with you. Most bars have stopped offering plastic straws, instead opting for paper straws. As much as these paper straws are better, the reality is that they are still very wasteful. By bringing your own you are cutting down your environmental impact. Make sure you inform the bartender every time you order that you do not need a straw. If you don’t want a straw and didn’t bring your own, you should still do this. It may seem like a small adjustment but if everyone did it it would make such a massive difference.
Rechargeable Batteries
These days there are fewer and fewer devices that require regular batteries. Most modern technologies come with rechargeable batteries built-in. However, you will still find that tv remotes and other things may still have you reaching for some double-As. If this is the case, make sure that you have a small stock of rechargeable batteries that you can use. Single-use batteries are incredibly wasteful and also very difficult to throw away. It is possible to recycle them but this is not available everywhere.
Wax Wraps
Making changes for the environment is about small steps that will help in the long term. Trying to cut out the use of anything that can only be used once is the main goal. Replacing cling film with wax wraps is a really good option if you are looking for a way to cover food to store in the fridge. They serve exactly the same function but wax wraps are reusable. You can even make your own from old clothes!
Cloth Bags
Every time you go to the shop, you should bring your own bag with you. You would think that in this day and age everyone would do this. Sadly they do not and what’s more, if you go to a grocery store, you can often end up with multiple plastic bags to hold your various fruits and vegetables. Buying some string cloth bags to replace these will help reduce your waste and impact on the planet.
Make A Change
To preserve the planet for future generations, we need to make some changes. Western lifestyles have become incredibly wasteful over the last 60 years. It can be hard to imagine the idea of potentially taking a few steps back, in terms of convenience and ease. All it will take is a few minor adjustments to your lifestyle that will very quickly become normal. If everyone could do this, alongside some major legislative changes from the world’s politicians then we might just have a chance.
