PAPER TOWELS

Don't you care about trees? Don't you care about the carbon emissions generated from the manufacturing machines? Don't you care about the 2% of total landfill that consists of paper towels!

Most of the people who grew up in India would have grown up using wash cloths to clean spills and hand towels or their own clothes to dry hands. In fact, the people in the West were doing the same, say, four generations back. From my observance in the last 10+ years living in the West, is that, one of the immediate habits we adapt is the paper towel usage.

Literally, it is painful for me when someone tears up my paper towel in the kitchen for drying their hands while the hand towel is just next to them. Or to put the unwanted parts of food that can be kept aside on their plate or can be trashed directly. Also, for wiping the counter top or table! We have got a sponge to wipe the spills, a small bit of cloth to wipe the oil spills and a cloth to wipe it clean!

Then, why do we have it? Just for emergency purposes, usually lasts for several months. When I walk into an environment friendly people's house (for example some of our Spiritual American friend's), they absolutely do not buy paper towels, instead have several clothes for different purposes. For me, a kitchen with few wash cloths here and there is more beautiful than a non-environmentally friendly person's nude bare kitchen showing up their best friend - paper towel.