Naked Science Forum
Life Sciences => The Environment => Topic started by: JRson on 24/03/2009 11:07:57
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Surely, this poll is too difficult. Now we can not live without paper.
But we still need to find a good way to deal with it, otherwise our forest will be destroyed completely.
1. paper letter/card/invitaion
It's easy to handle it. We can use e-mail and e-card.
At present, e-good is becoming more and more popular. People around us have been accustomed to receive e-mail, e-card and even e-good, why not choose it?
I search some free site for example: https://mail.google.com/
Mod edit - I'm sure folks can find their own, local to them as well
2.take-away package
If you cook and eat at home or eat at the restaurant, all the pollution will not happen.
At least, you should try to make it less.
I suggest you should cook at home and the food will be more healthy.
3.toilet paper
I have no idea about this one [:-\]
4.napkin
Many restaurant offer paper one, but if you eat at home, everything will be Ok!
5.newspaper
Now lots of e-news and e-book are surrounding us, we can easily get what we want from network, why still use paper one.
If you don't know how to get it, you can just write the paper name on goole.com.
Then you can get all the content on the newspaper.
such as http://www.bbc.co.uk/
Saving our home...
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1. paper letter/card/invitaion
Though I personally would rather receive an e-card, some people look at this as the equivalent of giving an important foreign leader a 24 disc set of movie classics in a different format than that of the dignitaries homeland.
2.take-away package
Eating at home is always better...kill two birds with one stone.
3.toilet paper
I tried taking Sheryl Crow's advice and only use one square, but now my wife wont even hold my hand.
4.napkin
I prefer my shirt, and if I eat at home, no one even knows.
5.newspaper
What will we line our birdcages with here in the U.S. if not the New York Times???
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I realize the poll expires in March 2003. However, there seems to be no shortage of base wood and recycled paper products in the US. In fact, I believe some cities are overwhelmed with excess paper in the local recycling bins and no longer openly encourage it.
In other words, paper products have become so successfully harvested from fast growing mono culture forestry plantations that recycling is redundant. But I could be wrong. However, I do not encourage anyone to use a single piece of toilet paper in the perverse belief they are saving the environment. Yuck.
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DDave - You are not in anyway at fault in this matter. Believe me, NOBODY is going to use a washable sponges to clean their anus as long as they can castigate Evil Paper Manufacturers for providing an alternative, as long as they provide that alternative.
Within living memory my ancestors used corn cobs. In the middle east they used stones. In the US paper products to clean ones anus began when Sear provided sales catalogs to remote farm communities.
This entire discussion reveals the entire disconnect between eternal crap and methods to minimize the results. The term I prefer: spoiled urban crappers.
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Given physical limitations on the number of times paper can be recycled and the issue of collecting, baling and transporting paper to a recycling plant coupled with sourcing paper from sustainable plantations; the "Best Practical Environmental Option" may not be to recycle.
In the UK, a lot of paper collected by local councils is hauled to Aylesford Newsprint in Kent, who recycle it into more newspapers. However, there is a strong argument to say that beyond the Southeast region it would be better to use paper as a fuel - either directly (using a "log maker")http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3916317711560498462&safe=active# (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3916317711560498462&safe=active#);
in some form of mass burn incinerator, or even to landfill - where the methane is captured for power generation.
I've got a log maker, the only problem I have with it is finding somewhere to dry the "logs" out - and it is rather messy so I would not do it in my kitchen or without gloves - but they do burn rather well for an hour or so, and as I have already bought the newspaper or received the unsolicited mail/ birthday cards, it makes a rather efficient fuel source...
Cardboard is often very helpful for composting, so again not putting it back onto a lorry makes a lot of sense!
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This poll is too funny. I mean, I can't consider myself waking up in the morning and reading e-edition of newspaper. How about going to the court and filling out e-forms for marriage, divorce and other legal settlements. How about eating food like that of dogs (directly from mouth) since that my save the paper consumption? This will be weird...right? [???] [???] [???]
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the most paper i recycle... all the junkmail comming through my door. unfortunatly my wife loves looking through the s*** to see if theres any offers on an electrical whisk that will spend teh rest of its life jamming the kitchen draws shut, good question why do draws close on the daùm things and then not opoen
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DD - Now HERE is a thought. CARBON SEQUESTRATION!
Very large amounts of paper end up in landfills. Surprisingly, not that much actually deteriorates over time. I remember reading that some 'modern day' archaeologists dug up a garbage dump from the late 1940's. The telephone books and, perhaps even newspapers, were still readable!
Are dumps anaerobic? I know methane bugs are hard at work, and at least in modern US dumps methane it is routinely and deliberately collected then burned for industrial uses. So thats sort of a twofer! Burn off bad methane, and sequester bad CO2.
I will never look at a trash truck the same way ever again......