How Many Times Reusable Items Need To Be Used To Offset Carbon Footprint
Which is better for the environment – a single-use plastic water bottle or a reusable one made of metal or BPA-free plastic? Many people feel good about using their stash of reusable products, like water bottles, shopping bags, straws and cloth napkins, but how much it actually helps the planet all depends on how many times it’s used.
According to Daily Mail, it takes a lot of uses – sometimes hundreds and thousands – to offset the amount of carbon emissions and toxic materials used to make these eco-friendly items. While the Environmental Protection Agency says reusable products are still the better option to offset plastic waste, here’s how many times you need to use these things before they’re really carbon neutral.
How many times do you need to “reuse” these items to reduce your carbon footprint:
- Cloth shopping bags – Used 71-hundred times to offset the CO2 emitted during production. Data shows that 90% are only used a handful of times.
- Water bottles – A bottle made of stainless steel, aluminum, glass or BPA-free plastic needs to be used 500 times to offset the carbon emissions used to make it.
- Cloth napkin – Needs to be used 43 times to offset the amount of carbon emissions used to make it, and washing it after each use adds to its emissions footprint.
- Coffee cup – A reusable coffee cup would need to be used 100 times to offset the 4.4-pounds of carbon emissions it takes to produce it. But the cup should last you through 8-thousand uses before it falls apart.
- Lunch box – You’ll need to use it 208 times to offset the carbon emissions it takes to make it.
- Straw – A metal straw will need to be used more than 150 times to offset the half pound of carbon emitted in production, while a silicone straw needs to be used 105 times.
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