Toilet paper (photography by Jordi Gallego)

I recently wrote an email to Kimberly Clark (famous for their paper products including Kleenex, Scott, Viva and Cottonelle) and asked why they bleach their toilet paper white. Their customer support explained that bleaching is not only for aesthetic purposes – it also removes the lignin or glue from the wood. The removal of lignin helps improve the strength, feel and shelf life of their tissue and paper.

Unfortunately, most paper mills and companies like Kimberly Clark use chlorine to bleach their toilet paper. The chlorine bleaching process creates many incredibly toxic by-products including dioxins which end up in our water systems and soils.

Humans are most often exposed to these chemicals by eating contaminated food (e.g. fish), drinking contaminated water, or by working at companies that produce dioxins (e.g. paper mills). It is believe that populations exposed to high levels of dioxins have increased risks of birth defects, cancer, diabetes and heart disease. You can learn more about studies on dioxins at the Nation Institute of Health.

I also wrote an email to Seventh Generation and asked why they whiten their toilet paper and why they, in contrast to Kimberly Clark, bleach without chlorine. Here’s Seventh Generation’s response from the Director of Contract Manufacturing:

“Our tissue products are whitened using processes that are chlorine free. Hydrogen peroxide and/or sodium hydrosulfate are typically used to whiten. Because our tissue products are made from 100% recycled feedstock, this lignin (glue) is not an issue for us. It has already been removed. The whitening process helps provide a tissue with consistent look and feel.

Although I tend to agree directionally with the statement about the lignin and its potential undesired impacts on tissue characteristics, I don’t necessarily agree that chlorine containing substances are the best overall methods for bleaching wood pulp when considering the potential adverse impact on the environment in which we live. Furthermore, I am not necessarily agreeing so readily that bleaching is absolutely necessary in order to make a tissue product that can meet consumer’s expectations. As a matter of fact, we offer an unbleached version of paper towels and napkins which tend to be well accepted by the Seventh generation customer. So, I am suggesting that even if bleaching result in somewhat better tissue characteristics, the value added may not be worth it if all aspects of the situation are being considered.”

As Seventh Generation mentions, there are alternatives to the chlorine bleaching processes. Here are your more eco-friendly options when it comes to toilet paper:

• Unbleached: Completely natural – no bleach added. May not be a winner on softness or comfort.

• Processed Chlorine Free (PCF): Recycled paper bleached with oxygen, ozone, or hydrogen peroxide. Examples brands of PCF toilet paper: Seventh Generation, Green Forest, Planet, 365 Whole Foods, Earth First. See the NRDC’s toilet paper comparison chart.

• Totally Chlorine Free (TCF): Non-recycled paper bleached with oxygen, ozone, or hydrogen.

That was the good, now here’s the bad (and the ugly):

• Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF): Paper bleached with chlorine dioxide. This process releases fewer dioxins than bleaching with chlorine gas, but it is still is harmful to the environment. Examples brands of ECF toilet paper: Charmin, Quilted Northern, Cottonelle, Angle Soft, Kleenex, Safeway Select

• Chlorine Gas: Dioxins galore!

So the next time you’re purchasing toilet paper, try out paper that is chlorine free. It’s better for the environment and still white and soft.

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garbage bags made from 100% recycled plastics for the Handicapped and Mentally Disabled Children Centre Melaka

The last time Argen and Cindy invited me to the Handicapped and Mentally Disabled Children Centre Melaka, Amy the nurse requested for heap of garbage bag. Since the centre is the shelter for many handicapped children, everyday it produces large amount of rubbish such as food waste, used diapers, etc. Amy then hopes that we could bring many of large garbage bags for the centre. We were told to hand the bags to her directly so that she could administrate the use of the bags in the centre.

Early this week while I had some free time, I purchased twenty bags of ten garbage bags made from 100% recycled plastics and handed to the centre’s management. We hope that it would help the centre to manage the waste better and keep it as hygiene and clean as possible for the children and staff living there.

Thanks to our kind friends for the contribution for helping the children. We are committing our ongoing support and love that we hope will be able to contribute to the wellbeing of the children.

May all beings be happy.

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International players from each of the nine nations, sponsored by Nike, all wearing the 100% recycled shirts, pose at an event at Battersea power station in London this week. Illustration: Paul Gilham

When Kaka and Ronaldinho stride out onto the pitch for the World Cup in South Africa this summer, few of their millions of fans are likely to notice that their yellow jerseys are made from old plastic bottles.

But five-time winners Brazil, along with Portugal and the Netherlands, will for the first time be clad in shirts made from recycled polyester in a bid to make the tournament a fraction greener. The shirts, made by Nike, will also be worn at the finals by the teams of the USA, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Serbia, and Slovenia.

Fans supporting their country can buy away kits of the 100% recycled shirts from today, with home versions available from 1 May. They will cost £50, the same price as non-recycled shirts.

It takes up to eight recycled plastic bottles to make each of the shirts, which are sourced from Japanese and Taiwanese landfill and melted down before being processed into fabric. Nike claims the process cuts energy use by 30% compared with newly manufactured polyester.

The sportswear brand is not the first apparel firm to make clothes from old plastic. Sainsbury’s has previously sold skirts, trousers and shirts made from recycled plastic bags under its Tu brand, while M&S and BHS started stocking school uniforms made from recycled polyester in 2007. Clothing brands such as Howies and Patagonia have also sold recycled plastic garments for years.

The kits are also reportedly designed to keep players dry and cool at the World Cup this June and July.

The move was welcomed by the green fashion industry. A spokesperson for the Ethical Fashion Forum, an industry body that promotes sustainability, said the recycled shirts were “definitely a step in the right direction.” She added that Nike had taken huge steps in recent years to improve its record on worker rights.

Nina Stevenson, from the Centre for Sustainable Fashion at London College of Fashion, said the material in the shirts is a genuinely “green” choice by Nike. “Using recycled PET in performance wear is a recognised innovation with real environmental benefits. By using existing resources, Nike are supporting closed loop design that is not compromising ecological balance,” said Stevenson.

In a recent interview with the Guardian, Nike’s vice-president of sustainable business and innovation, Hannah Jones, said green initiatives such as the shirts made business sense for the company. “The link between sustainability and Nike as a growth company has never been clearer and there is a real business case to be made for making Nike a more sustainable company,” she said.

Jones also described carbon offsetting, which Nike ditched last year, as a “last resort”. And she argued that a decision last year by Nike to resign from the US Chamber of Commerce’s board over its stance on climate change, rather than pulling out entirely as companies such as Apple did, had enabled it to continue “a productive dialogue”. However, she admitted the chamber was yet to change its mind, which has seen the body campaigning against legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the US.

by Adam Vaughan. guardian.co.uk, Thursday 25 February 2010 18.13 GMT

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