Being environmentally conscious starts by making small changes to everyday habits that have an impact on our environment. While the problem may seem insurmountable, there are simple steps that we can all implement into our lives that can help stop the destruction of our planet.
If you’re struggling to figure out which changes to make, try taking it room by room in your home and deciding on what you can do to make a change for environmental changes in that room. Take, for example, the laundry room. Here are just 5 easy steps you can take while doing the laundry to make your environmental footprints smaller:
1. Line dry
Forget about using the tumble dryer and hang your clothes on the line instead. This will limit the amount of electricity used and help extend the life of your clothes. Frequent use of the tumble dryer causes lose fibres from being knocked around while being dried. While drying outside your clothes will also benefit from the anti-microbial effects of the sun.
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2. Wash full loads
To avoid unnecessary energy consumption, make sure to only wash when you have a full load. Not only does this save energy, but also water and time. Not every item needs to go into the laundry basket after one wear, some items can still be hung up and worn again.
3. Look for alternatives
Look for more environmentally friendly alternatives to everyday laundry essentials. For example, plastic pegs or packaging. If it is possible to use materials, other than plastic, choose that. When plastic is thrown away it can take up to 1 000 years for it to decompose in landfills, which has a huge negative impact on the environment. Single-use plastics are the main culprits for the growing number of plastic pollution. Bottom line, if you can choose an alternative, do it. For example, Personal Touch Washing Powder sheets is environmentally friendly due to its 64% less plastic than a 2kg bag of washing powder. All packaging is completely recyclable and won’t add to your environmental footprint.
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4. Look for natural fibres
Choosing clothes with natural fibres can help stop microscopic pieces of plastic being washed away from synthetic fibres. Research has shown that marine life ingests these fibres and absorbs the plastic into their tissue, which affects them and the animals that eat them. Choose materials such as organic cotton, wool and bamboo for clothes and bedding.
5. Use cold water
By washing your clothes with cold water, you are cutting down on energy consumption. Up to 90% of energy consumed during a load of laundry goes to the use of hot water.
