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[Just how fast can you dispose of a disposable nappy? Dr Terzis ponders the problem. (JPEG, 8,740 bytes)]

One of the biggest time-saving inventions for busy parents is not as disposable as you might think, according to research in the Department of Environmental Science.

So-called disposable nappies could take anything up to 200 years to degrade on waste sites, says lecturer Dr Evangelos Terzis.

And each baby gets through about 2,500 nappies a year.

Dr Terzis discovered that while washable nappies consumed more energy in washing and drying, in the long term they were cheaper and kinder to the environment. Additionally disposable nappies cost up to £5.55 for a pack of 50.

"Disposable nappies consume more raw materials in manufacture and create more waste for disposal," said Dr Terzis. "They are made predominantly from wood pulp - 65 per cent - and plastic for the waterproof cover, fastening tapes, and edging. While everything else degrades, no one tells you how long it's going to take." Dr Terzis brought boxes of nappies into his laboratory and carried out experiments to test how quickly they would degrade. "Even in ideal controlled conditions it would take at least 55 years," he said. "In a real landfill site things would be a lot different and we are looking at 200-plus years for nappies to degrade." Meanwhile landfill sites are being clogged with used nappies. In the US, research suggests that around 1 per cent of the total landfill content is taken up with them. And the problem can only get worse as more parents use the quick and easy option.

Dr Terzis added: "In the UK, disposable nappies account for over 80 per cent of the market - a market created by the annual birth of around 790,000 consumers. Parents use them because they are convenient but they are not in the best interests of the environment.

"If parents aren't willing to return to washable nappies, the best alternative would be to improve the degradation of disposables in landfill sites - or to burn them. That would be the best waste-management option."

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University - Public Relations - Annual Reports - 2000 Contents - Research

University of Bradford, Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom

Content last updated 17 May 2000
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