The growing number of small and single-person households is
creating huge climate problems. Researcher Jan Kooijman
says this is because each household needs many essential
items that would otherwise be shared. These range from
disposable items, like toothpaste, to larger items, like TVs and
furniture. The production of each item releases greenhouse
gases into the air.
We mean well, but many of the things we try to do right
don't have much effect on the climate. Kooijman says that
while recycling helps, using water wisely, walking, taking
public transportation instead of driving, and turning off
electricity are all much more important. For instance, if you
use your car to take empty bottles and cans back to the
grocery store for recycling, you've wasted more energy than
you've saved. Permanently lowering the room temperature
two degrees saves as much energy as most people use in the
form of bottles, cans and papers for an entire year. Switching
from a SUV to a sedan can save as much energy as 400
years of bottle recycling.
However, it should be noted that the study was financed by
the packaging industry.
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