A Little Guilt Never Hurt the Environment

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Author: Riley Hooper

I feel guilty every time I go to the bathroom at this school. But before your imagination starts to wander, let me clarify my statement: my guilt lies in the post-relieved state of the bathroom experience—namely, in the washing of my hands. I’m proud to say that I wash my hands after going to the bathroom. However, I’m not proud to say that I follow this action by drying them with paper towels—yes, I used the plural. It pains me to admit I sometimes have even used three.

This isn’t healthy—for my personal sanity. I go to the bathroom far too many times per day to be feeling guilty every time, and yeah, I guess my actions are not healthy for that thing we like to call the environment either . . .

Paper towels and bathroom tissues cannot be recycled. Although they can be made out of recycled materials, once used they can never be used again. Paper products generate a lot of waste in the United States—30 percent of the timber consumed in the US is used to make paper products and 40 percent of trash in US landfills consists of paper products, according to greenseal.org.

The occasional visit to the public restroom and dabbling in its paper towel supply is acceptable. The problem with living on a college campus is that these public restrooms are all that most of us have. Having to use paper towels 24/7, seven days a week wears on my conscience—as it should yours.

Who are we to think that we can just use up all these trees and send their by-products to landfills, all in the name of drying our hands? In order to save the planet from the current ecological crisis, we need to change the way we look at things—namely our consumption. We can’t keep going on using the world’s natural resources for useless reasons and for our personal convenience as if we have no conscience. Caring about the planet starts with deep respect for it.

The way in which we view paper towel consumption is just the beginning. I’m not saying paper towel waste will be the demise of our environment. In terms of threats to the planet, I’d say consumption of oil and depletion of the ozone layer are much more serious issues (to name a couple). We need to be more conscious of our actions and their repercussions—and what better place to start than a place we frequent daily? Let your hands air dry. Store a hand towel in your dorm room bathroom, or wait until you get back to your room to use your own towel. Use the electronic dryer if you have a choice. Cut down to one sheet instead of three.

At the very least I’m asking you to feel guilty every time you dry your hands. If a change in the way we think about our consumption is necessary, this guilt is the first step. My apologies if it hurts your well-being. Try thinking about the well-being of the environment for a change.

Riley Hooper is a sophomore Religious Studies major. She can be reached at rhooper@oxy.edu.

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