[OKC] From Mother Jones: 5 Handi Wipes or Hot Shower?

[Miles, Karen]

THIS WEEK'S CONUNDRUM

5 Handi Wipes or Hot Shower? <http://ga3.org/ct/e7N9tS61vrNH/> 

 

This question comes by way of Mother Jones board member Jon Pageler
<http://ga3.org/ct/c1N9tS61vrNK/> , who's currently helping
<http://ga3.org/ct/dpN9tS61vrND/>  with the relief effort in Haiti,
where water is in short supply. But I've heard of folks taking waterless
showers in nonemergency situations, too. Last year, for example, People 
reported <http://ga3.org/ct/4dN9tS61vr2N/>  that Brad Pitt sometimes
cleans up with baby wipes. Granted, Pitt does it to save time between
scene changes on the set. But considering that showers comprise 17
percent <http://ga3.org/ct/X1N9tS61vr2S/>  of indoor residential water
use in the US, could bathing with wipes be better for the planet, too? 

Probably not, says Jonathan Kaledin, a water conservation expert at the
Nature Conservancy. "You have to consider all the water it takes to make
the Handi Wipes," he says. "The wipes, the chemicals-it all adds up."
The Water Footprint Network <http://ga3.org/ct/47N9tS61vr22/> , a water
conservation nonprofit based in the Netherlands, estimates
<http://ga3.org/ct/r1N9tS61vr2s/>  that growing the wood to make a
single sheet of paper requires 2.6 gallons of water. That's already 13.2
gallons for 5 sheets of paper-and that's just the wood. By the time you
figure in the water costs associated with the manufacture of the paper,
producing the solution the wipes are soaked in, and packaging and
shipping the wipes, you're looking at significantly more water (and
energy, for that matter) than a five-minute shower, which, if you're
using a low-flow showerhead, requires only about 10 gallons of water
<http://ga3.org/ct/XdN9tS61vr2L/> .

Under extenuating circumstances-disasters that jeopardize water supply,
or even regional droughts-wipes might still be a better choice, says
Kaledin. But as a general rule, a short shower is a better bet than
wipes. Especially if you bathe efficiently: Keep the heat down to save
energy. Turn the water off while you soap up. And if you haven't already
installed a low-flow showerhead, do it now-it'll save as much as 15
gallons of water per shower, not to mention moola on your water bill.

Shopping tip: Showerheads bearing the EPA's WaterSense
<http://ga3.org/ct/BpN9tS61vr2z/>  label are about 20 percent more
efficient than their conventional counterparts. [READ MORE]
<http://ga3.org/ct/e7N9tS61vrNH/> 

 

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.sustainableokc.org/pipermail/okc-sustainableokc.org/attachments/20100127/ce1c7c0e/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/gif
Size: 2310 bytes
Desc: image001.gif
URL: <http://lists.sustainableokc.org/pipermail/okc-sustainableokc.org/attachments/20100127/ce1c7c0e/attachment.gif>