Never ending nappy mountains

Will a government incentive really halt the march of the disposable nappy mountain?

21 February 2006 12:52 GMT / By Ben Harvard Taylor

Over the last few days the papers have widely reported on the growing nappy mountain filling landfill sites around the country. Apparently 4% of landfill is made up of disposable nappies - quite a horrific thought.

In an attempt to deal with the mountain, some local councils have introduced schemes to encourage parents to go green, shunning disposable convenience for ecologically sound re-usables. The re-usable has come a long way from the days of my childhood where Terrylene was the fabric of choice - it now sports a liner, an outer shell and all manner of attaching paraphenalia for the all-action baby.

Having spoken to my wife I'm firmly of the opinion that these schemes are unlikely to make much of an impression on the disposables dominance. Most mothers I know are so over-tired from just looking after the sprogs that the thought of having to tackle mounds of brown towelling as well would drive them to (even more) drink.

However, a bio-degradable nappy that fully decomposes in 6 months? Now that's more like it. A quick search on google revelaed 43,000 sites offering such a product. My garden will certainly be lush for years to come!

If you do decide to go down the, allegedly, more eco-friendly route then we'll be sure to put up some washing machine reviews in coming months

Full tags

Dad, Baby