"Fluffy" toilet paper means fewer forests

Soft toilet paper bad for the environment

One area of personal hygiene that's seen growth in the past year is the soft toilet paper market. In 2008, brands such as Cottonelle Ultra, Quilted Northern Ultra, and Charmin Ultra saw a 40% increase in sales in some markets.

But fluffiness comes at a great environmental cost. Millions of trees harvested in North America and in Latin American countries, including some percentage of trees from rare old-growth forests in Canada, have been used to create the soft tissue.

Quite a change from the days of leaves and Sears catalogs.

James Malone, a spokesman for Georgia Pacific, the maker of Quilted Northern. says customers demand soft tissue -- “Recycled fiber cannot do it.”

The U.S. compulsion toward soft tissue has not escaped the notice of environmentalists, who are increasingly making toilet tissue manufacturers the targets of campaigns.

Also in the South:

ALABAMA: Sen. Shelby meets with Obama to discuss financial industry overhaul

ARKANSAS: State gets $351.5 million for infrastructure improvements

FLORIDA: South Florida suffering from mass layoffs

GEORGIA: Bill to make schools tackle obesity passes in House

KENTUCKY: Rift between Sen. Bunning and GOP widens as lawsuit threatened

LOUISIANA: "Woeful" reviews for Gov. Jindal's speech on national television

MISSISSIPPI: "Back to school" tax break advances

NORTH CAROLINA: Gov. Bev Perdue wants more cut from budget

SOUTH CAROLINA: State judiciary must deal with nearly $9 million in cuts

TENNESSEE: Solar products plant to be built near Chattanooga

VIRGINIA: Bill on guns in bars passes again in General Assembly

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