Compostable Diapers a Growing Trend in Eco-Friendly Diapering

The green movement is growing and more families are making eco-conscious diaper choices. Over the past few years the only alternative to disposable diapers have been cloth diapers. While modern cloth diapers have come a long way since “old school” birdseye flats, diaper pins, and bulky rubber pants, cloth diapers still don’t work for every family.

Onto the part that will make any user of throw away diapers feel (at least) a little bit guilty. It is a well known fact that disposable diapers are bad for the environment. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency disposable diapers can take more than 500 years to break down in a landfill. That means the first disposable diaper (made in 1948) is still sitting around in a landfill. Disposable diapers are the third largest source of landfill waste in the United States and leach petroleum, dioxins, and pathogens into our soils and waterways. While landfills cap, Americans continue to create a large percentage of the world’s waste.The landfill you see driving down Interstate 91 through Hartford used to be level with the highway - even in my lifetime! Estimates vary, but as many as 27 billion disposable diapers are used in the United States each year, between 2,000 - 4,000 diapers per child in one year. That means about 50% of all household garbage is made up of disposable diapers. That is a lot of garbage and pollution!

Compostable diapers are a great bridge that links the convenience of a disposable diaper to the growing eco-conscious trend by avoiding negative environmental impacts. They look and function the same as a conventional disposable diaper, but they are chemical and fragrance free and made with plant based fibers (not plastic!).

So, you’re thinking, “Do I compost these diapers in my backyard?” The answer is, let’s leave this to the professionals. Our backyard compost (even the best ones) is basically a pile of rot. While kitchen scraps break down quickly (and safely) in our backyard, our compost piles are not able to reach temperatures high enough (around 160 degrees) and provide the right amount of moisture required to kill harmful bacteria and pathogens found in human waste. Basically, you’d be contaminating your back yard little by little. Even your municipal curbside compost is only meant to handle organic matter like kitchen scraps, lawn trimmings, and cardboard.

What do families do if they want to choose compostable diapers? Over the past few years a growing number of diaper services around the country have begun to offer compostable diapers along with traditional cloth diapers. For Connecticut families, Simple Diaper & Linen offers both compostable diaper as well as traditional cloth diaper services. Using a diaper service means that the diapers are delivered to your doorstep, picked up, then transferred to a commercial composting facility. These facilities follow federal standards for pathogen removal and have the capacity to handle biosolids (as well as plenty of other organic matter) appropriately. The diapers become nutrient rich topsoil in three months - faster than an orange peel!

To learn more about compostable or cloth diaper service options please visit www.simple.coop or contact Jessica or Angie at info@simple.coop or 413-749-6232