Wet wipes are not tissues.

Wet wipes or aka wet tissues are a problem. They may be called “tissue”, but they are not. As they either contain polypropylene (PP), or they are made out of polyester, they are basically non biodegradable. In another word, they are plastic in disguise. They do not look like conventional plastic we have in mind, but the damage they may impose towards our environment is essentially the same, hence the term “in disguise”. They are our modern days “problem of convenience”.

With the Covid-19 situation, wet wipes have moved up to our shopping list, alongside surgical mask and hand sanitizer. However, even before the pandemic, wet wipes have been slowly creeping into our life, especially in restaurants. They are the small shiny packets sitting happily on the table before you were seated. Most restaurants will charge when you open and use those wet wipes. What I always do is, bring them to the counter and return to them during payment. Despite the convenience of wet wipes, I still prefer soap and water (oldies but goodies) whenever possible, accompanied by a plain handkerchief. For me, most of the time, even soap is omitted (judge me all you want).

Wet wipes are also the biggest culprit in sewage blockage. Wipes that are flushed down from the toilet often get caught in sewage pipes (not all sewage pipes have smooth lining), and their elastic and undissolvable nature (due to plastic content) will easily clogged up your sewage pipes. Words of advice, do not ever flush these tissue looking wet wipes into the toilet, even if they said they are flushable.

Parents with babies, I know baby wipe is a handy invention for you all. Yet, understand that wet wipes are also a form of plastic. It means they will stay with us for a very long time. They are not biodegradable or recyclable. In conclusion, they are plain trash after using.

Sadly, we don’t get to just “wet wipes” away our problem, in fact, we are bringing more problems with them.