Behind many North American suburban community’s gates, anti-laundry line sentiments continue to be perpetuated much to the delight of climate change naysayers and those who find the laundry line unsightly or just downright vulgar.
In many North American communities there are subdivisions, apartments, condominiums or privately owned developments, that have community plans or anti-laundry line covenants prohibiting the use of clotheslines. Often citizens are forced to legally challenge their right to hang their clothes out to dry. Yet around the globe the majority of the world chooses to dry their laundry naturally, regardless of space constraints, financial means or weather conditions.
Line drying your clothes in the spring and summer can prevent an estimated 700lbs of carbon dioxide (per household) from releasing into the atmosphere.
The reality is the humble clothesline is one of the best energy efficient appliances you can use in the home. Stopglobalwarming.org reports line drying your clothes in the spring and summer can prevent an estimated 700lbs of carbon dioxide (per household) from releasing into the atmosphere. The standard clothes dryer consumes an estimated 900kWh of energy per year, about 10% of a household’s total energy consumption. The clothes’ dryer is the second largest consumer of household energy after the refrigerator. Natural gas dryers consume about 50% less energy than an electric dryer. Energy Star Dryers are considered to be highly efficient and use less energy than older model dryers.
The international “Right to Dry” movement to embrace the laundry line started in America in response to communities that prohibited their citizens from utilizing outdoor clotheslines. Today the movement continues with the annual celebration of Hang Your Laundry Out Day on April 19th.
Resources
Earth Easy: http://eartheasy.com/
Energy Star Appliances: http://www.energystar.gov/
Project Laundry List: http://www.laundrylist.org/
The Laundry Alternative: http://www.laundry-alternative.com/
Wash Right Europe: http://www.washright.com/
Green Pages
April 19th Hang Your Laundry Out Day
Project Laundry List is North America’s premier laundry line educational and advocacy organization. Project Laundry List runs the Right to Dry Campaign, Stop the Ban Campaign and the Campaign for Cleaner Energy Alternatives. They also publish the newsletter Hanging Out: http://www.laundrylist.org/
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written by Rebecca , June 02, 2010