I was shocked a couple days ago when I found out that a diaper takes 500 years to decompose! This is quoted from Environment Canada. Also shocking was the discovery that as parents, we are breaking the law and causing harm to our drinking water!
By law, you are not permitted to dispose of fecal matter in to landfills! Poop in our landfills leaches disease and virus into the earth and water sources! Gross! By law, you are supposed to scrape the poop off the diaper - into the toilet, so it can be treated at the sewage facilities! Who knew? I don't know anyone who scrapes poo off diapers! But - it all makes very good sense, and I am still unable to wrap my head around 500 years. Basically, every diaper ever made still sits in a land fill. I feel terrible about my involvement in this and resolve to do better!
This is what I discovered about modern day cloth diapers!....
Those gross wet pails that were filled with bleach water, where the diapers were left to soak are a thing of the past! They have been replaced with:
and
Remember those safety pins, that weren't always so safe?
They have been replaced with this
.
.
.
And if you are not interested in playing origami with cloth like this
.
.
.
Then you simply invest in these:
.
.
.
Scared of scraping poo? That's what flushable diaper liners are for! Just simply empty it in the toilet!
.
.
.
Some smart Mama has even come up with this to make rinsing easier: Hooks right up to your toilet!!
.
.
.
The only thing left to do, it wash and dry... but you were doing laundry anyway right?
If you make the change, you will save lotsa money!
.
.
$2000 - $3000 in fact!
So, with all this in mind and the fact that:
With organic materials, they are easier on babies bottoms, reducing the risk for rashes.
They are environmentally friendly - the average baby produces one ton of disposable diapers for the land fill!!
.
.
Why wouldn't you want to use cloth diapers?
For this still not yet convinced... check out this video
2 comments:
Here's my question thought- we have been told that if you have to pay for water, and we do because we live in the city, then you need to calculate your savings very carefully, because many people find that it costs them more to do the diapers because they pay for water and heat. I would love to say that I would do cloth based on the benefit to the earth, but I will honestly admit, that with two kidlets coming, money will be tight, and we will save where we can.
Yes, your right Jess. We absolutely need to take into consideration the carbon footprint and utility cost of using cloth diapers. According to this report http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/cloth-diapers-vs-disposable-diapers/ the cost for water, gas and detergent came in around $700 for the diapering life of 1 child. This still correlates to a savings of $1000 +(estimated). However, not all water fees are the same... nor are everyone's washing machine. A front loader vs top loader and star energy etc. need to be looked at.
In my situation, we pay a flat fee for water - and electricity is very cheap. And - I would be able to hang dry in the summer months.
The above link provides the formulas for you to figure out your own specific costs if you are interested in figuring it out.
I presume that your kid/s won't really be in diapers long enough for the initial cost of the cloth to even weigh out though?
Post a Comment