Hemp is still a controversial topic, especially in the United States. It’s illegal to grow hemp while it’s legal to clear-cut massive forests, burn exorbitant amounts of fossil fuels, and spray hundreds of hectares with pesticides.
It’d be wise for everyone to understand that the method of saving the world isn’t waiting to be discovered; in fact, one of the easiest ways to start saving it is hemp.
Part of the problem is that many believe hemp is marijuana. We can’t count how many times we’ve had to explain this: hemp is not weed!
The component that makes marijuana a drug is called THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). It is true, hemp is a variety of the cannabis sativa plant, but its THC content is a mere fraction, 1.5% at most.
Therefore, no, you can’t get high from hemp. Go ahead, smoke it, you’re just going to end up with a headache. It does look like marijuana, and that fact alone has marginalized its use in the US. Despite this, it’s used in many other parts of the world.
Plastic pollution is a serious threat to our planet; it plagues our lands, seas, natural ecosystems, and even our bodies.
But, how can hemp save the environment? Let us show you!
Faster and Better Paper and Cardboard Products
It takes about 30 years for a forest to grow into a harvestable state. Meanwhile, it takes about 12 to 14 weeks to grow hemp.
So why are we still killing our land by clearcutting? Hemp is ready to harvest almost right away, and it produces better paper because it’s acid-free. In other words, hemp paper doesn’t become yellow or brittle.
Every year we stack more and more pollution during the production of wood paper and pulp, and hemp paper doesn’t even need to be bleached with chlorine. Hydrogen peroxide is enough to whiten it and it’s a lot better for the earth.
Cheaper, Healthier, and Sturdier Clothes and Fabrics
Not only is hemp more comfortable than synthetic fibers, but growing this plant requires no pesticides. Also, it grows quickly, therefore being cheaper to produce.
Hemp is much gentler on the skin, keeps you cool or warm enough, and several studies have demonstrated that the cannabinoids found in the fabric are antibacterial.
In comparison to polypropylene plastic (PP), hemp is about 2 to 3 times stronger as well, making it an excellent heavy-duty material. You can read about The Shocking Benefits of Hemp Fabric.
Better Construction Materials
Hemp is naturally mold, rot, and pest resistant. Now imagine using hemp for building materials.
Hemp can be used to produce several materials such as fiberboards, carpets, stuccos, cement blocks, insulators, composite plastic, and even hemp concrete, or more fashionably hempcrete! Read more about The Main Ways in Which Hemp Plastic Might Change the World.
Petroleum-based products can’t compete with hemp, and several tests have demonstrated this.
Cleaner and Renewable Fuel
Hemp seeds can be pressed into oil, and then turned into biodiesel. If you didn’t know, biodiesel is a biodegradable fuel that doesn’t harm the air as much as fossil fuels. Sure, there are better alternatives to make biodiesel, but it’s a cheap alternative that performs better than normal gasoline or diesel.
So, hemp can do wonderful things for our planet, and we’re letting preconceived judgment stand between us and a cleaner Earth.
Anything made of hemp is biodegradable. Just imagine a future in which everything we don’t need can be thrown into the compost and become equally useful again. Hopefully, this will happen soon.
