Paper plates can be composted... No need for water or for filling the landfil...

But as for water problems, I think we as a society need to re-evaluate our "combat against nature" in our long term planning for human living. Currently we think that we can live or farm anywhere and just pipe in what water we need. I think it is time we truly consider the limits of our environments. We need to be locally sustainable, and that means food, water, energy, resources, all should be obtained or created locally (and the waste must also be a local problem, not one that can be shipped away to a landfill in another locale)... We can't keep taking it from other areas, distroying wildlife areas, creating wastelands through water rechanelling and cash crop growing, poluting the water we haven't laid claim to...

If youre eating soup you could just put the pan on a pot holder on the table and eat out of the pan and not have to use a bowl. : ) If youre making a sandwich just make it on the counter and pic it up and eat it. Who needs a plate? What are other things we could eat without using dishes? Fruits and vegetables.

Now that is funny.

Paper-making does use water, though I am not sure exactly how much. So does growing trees and recycling other paper. www.internationalpaper.com/our%...r.htm

In Europe, they have half-flush toilets, where you can choose to do a half flush or a full flush depending on the contents of the bowl. Some people reuse their dish and shower water to water their plants.

Seems like there are a lot of better ways to conserve water than moving to a disposable product that likely uses more water in production.

Don't forget the other chemicals involved in paper making, too. I'm fairly certain some kind of bleaching agent must be used to make those blinding white Chinet plates. Plus all the plastic packaging, and fuel used to get them to the stores, and to your house...I could go on...