Pledge to “Wipe Right” on National Toilet Paper Day
WASHINGTON – The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is urging American consumers to mark National Toilet Paper Day by pledging to use recycled toilet paper—or “wipe right”—to save more than one million trees from the tree-to-toilet pipeline.
“The tragic Amazon fires burning right now show how fragile the world’s forests really are,” said Shelley Vinyard, Boreal Corporate Campaign Manager at NRDC. “If every American switched one roll of toilet paper made from trees to a roll made from 100% recycled materials, we could save over 1 million trees, which are critical to meeting the world’s goals for avoiding catastrophic climate change. It would also show companies it’s time for them to stop flushing our trees down the toilet.”
Many major toilet paper brands are made with 100% pulp from ancient trees and old-growth forests, like the Canadian boreal forest, with zero recycled materials. More than 1 million acres of the Canadian boreal are clear-cut each year – that’s more than seven National Hockey League (NHL) rinks a minute – threatening hundreds of Indigenous communities, iconic boreal caribou and billions of migratory birds, all of which call this ancient forest home. On top of that, recycled toilet paper has one-third the carbon footprint of toilet paper made from trees, such as Procter & Gamble’s Charmin.
NRDC’s goal is to reach 100,000 pledges to wipe right for the environment and use recycled toilet paper. After people take the pledge, NRDC will send important information, resources and tips that will help people become a more conscious toilet paper consumer.
“Toilet paper is the ultimate disposable product, yet too many toilet paper brands make it out of pulp from ancient trees and old-growth forests,” said Vinyard. “Buying recycled content toilet paper is easy—it’s on the same aisle in the grocery store, and it is comparable to other brands’ prices. The more people choose to ‘wipe right,’ the bigger positive impact we can have in fighting climate change and saving the world’s forests.”
As a conscious toilet paper consumer, I pledge to:
- Continue the fight to protect our environment and our forests by purchasing and using toilet paper made from recycled or other sustainable materials.
- Share information about sustainable toilet paper brands and ways consumers can minimize the impact of their toilet paper purchases.
- Look for ways to avoid using other forest- and climate-harming tissue products.
- Encourage toilet paper manufacturers that don’t provide sustainable toilet paper options to improve their practices.
Additional Resources:
- Report: “The Issue With Tissue: How Americans Are Flushing Forests Down the Toilet”
- NRDC toilet paper scorecard: https://www.nrdc.org/media/2019/190220
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The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.