There has been a long-lasting debate about whether cloth or disposable diapers have a greater impact on the environment. I have had my wee one in cloth since birth, and I am a firm believer that cloth diapers are much better for the environment, your babe and your pocketbook! I will say, however, that cloth diapers are not as absorbent as disposable, and my family has decided to use 7th Generation disposable diapers at night so that we are not awakened by middle-of-the-night leaks (sleep is very, very precious in our house). We also use disposable if we are traveling out of town by airplane, or by car for more than a few days. So, I do love having the option of disposables when I need them.
Advocates for disposable diapers say that the energy and water used to wash the diapers is more of a burden on our planet than using disposable diapers. Producing disposable diapers uses 82,000 tons of plastic and more than 200,000 trees each year in the US ALONE! The manufacturing process also uses 3.5 BILLION gallons of oil, a whole lot of water (although I was unable to find an exact amount) and produces pollution in the process. Sure, cloth diapers need to be manufactured as well, but those diapers will be used 100+ times each, as opposed to only once.
Plus, we need to look into the packaging and delivery impacts of those diapers. Each package of diapers is wrapped in plastic which must be produced (using water, oil, and producing pollution) and then must be disposed of (which means it will sit for a VERY long time in a landfill as plastics do not break down, even under perfect conditions). Then, each package of diapers must be shipped somewhere (using oil and creating pollution). Cloth diapers are normally not packaged in plastic and they are only shipped once. Then they sit at your home where they do not contribute to global warming.
But what about all of the water and detergent used to wash cloth diapers? We have a good supply of cloth (enough to last about 1 week). That means we do one load of diapers each week, using hot water, with biodegradable detergent. So, we use about 50-75 gallons of water a week to wash the diapers plus the energy used to heat the water. Some sources say the water used for laundering cloth diapers at home is the same as flushing the toilet 5-6 times per day. No one has said that we should start peeing in the trash can to save water, so why should our kiddos? When compared to the water, oil, and materials needed to manufacture, package and ship enough diapers for one week, the cloth diaper footprint is much lower.
Then there is the issue of the disposal.....18 billion disposable s are thrown into landfills each year (the 3rd largest source of waste in US landfills). Diapers don't really decompose, and just end up sitting in those landfills potentially indefinitely. Some diapers are advertised as being "biodegradable". Unfortunately, things (even biodegradable ones) just don't decompose in landfills. The lack of water and oxygen creates an environment that preserves things, even ones that would break down very quickly if exposed to the elements. For example, newspapers that have sat in landfill for 50+ years can still be as readable as on the day they were printed! So, that means those dirty diapers will just sit and be preserved in our landfills. Yummm. A present for our future generations. Technically, human waste is not legally allowed to be disposed of in municipal trash (so, yes, you are supposed to dump out that poopy diaper before you trash it). But, who actually does this? Probably very few people. So what that means is that all of those dirty diapers have a chance at contaminating groundwater supplies if the landfill they are in ever begins to leak. Human waste can carry pathogens and viruses, which can than make entire communities sick. With cloth diapers, solid wastes get treated with the sewage water and don't run the risk of contaminating groundwater and drinking water supplies!
Plus, the stuff in those disposables can be not so great for your babe. If you use regular diapers that are bleached with chlorine, they can contain dioxin, which is a known carcinogen with the potential to cause liver damage and other problems. Also, the gel stuff that makes diapers super absorbent is the same chemical that was linked to toxic shock syndrome (from tampons) in women. And for some reason, it is OK to let your baby sit in these chemicals for the first 2+ years of their life? Crazy. 7th Generation and other more eco-friendly diapers do not come with these problems, but despite the fact they are gentler on baby's health, they are still harder on the environment.
I have had friends worry that using cloth would be a hassle or messy, but once you get used to it, it is (normally) just as easy as disposables. It really is not that bad to wipe off some poop and dump it in the toilet before throwing your diaper into your diaper pail-- you have already had to clean it off baby's bum, so this is just sort of an extension of that. Plus, cloth diapers make your baby's butt look super cute, it pads them when they fall, and they say it helps to get the potty trained earlier. Finn is 17.5 months old and uses the potty several times each day!
So, if the facts are so clear, you might ask why this debate ever started in the first place. Politics my friend, politics. Corporations rule America, and this is just one more example. After Earth Day 1990, Proctor and Gamble started to see losses in disposable diaper sales (due to rising environmental awareness) and funded a study that just happened to find that cloth diapers were worse for the environment. And yes, we as consumers believed them.
To read more information on this topic check out:
http://www.mothering.com/articles/new_baby/diapers/joy-of-cloth.html
http://www.squidoo.com/EcoFriendlyDiapers
or google your own search!
We have been clothing-it for almost 18months now, and although I am not a cloth diaper authority, I have spent some time figuring out some tricks of the trade. Sites like this are a great place to exchange helpful hints and troubleshoot your cloth diaper problems before you give up!
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