DISPOSABLE DIAPERS SUPPORT GREEN SOCIETY?
There are many types of disposable diapers available in our market for our convenience. While we claimed that we are concious society, care about our environment, concern over the landfill spaces as we pushed for "greener society", disposable diapers are still disposable.
Disposable diapers that promoted by manufacturers as all natural, earth friendly, plastics free, chlorine free and even at times, compostable are filling up our landfills.
A disposable diaper with a plastics exterior lining is no difference than a 100% plastics free diaposable diaper once it has been tossed into a plastics household trash bag and dumped into a landfill. Its still plastics.
DO DISPOSABLE DIAPERS TAKE 500 YEARS TO BIODEGRADE?
Cloth Diaper experts often write about the length of time it takes for a disposable diapers to break down wothin a landfill. Experts cited 500 years as the time frame for the disposable diapers to biodegrade due to its plastics ingredient.
Since disposable diapers have not been in existance for 500 years, obviously, this is just a projection. Therefore this is based on what evidence? Actually there is no firsthand evidence of the decomposition rate of disposable diapers.
Juliet Lapidos describes how scientist estimate the length of time it takes to trash decompose.
" To make long term estimates of this sort, scientist often yse respirometry test. The experiment place a solid waste sample in a vessel containing microbe-rich compoct, the aerate the mixture. Other the course of several days, microorganism assimilate the sample bit by bit and produce carbon dioxide. The resultant carbon dioxide level serves as an indicator of degradation."
Respirometry tests are effective for products like newspapers and banana peels, but not plastics bag. Plastics bag are synthetic and not recognized as food by the microorganism to eat. In other words : Plastic cannot biodegrade.
Cloth Dispers are Not Disposable
As landfills are in concern, and when it comes to diapering, CLOTH DIAPERS are the BEST answer. Reduce impact by reducing personal waste. You can diaper your child with cloth and re-use the diapers over and over again.
When the product is advertise as biogradable, it does not mean it will biodegrade. Actually it means that it "CAN" biodegrade under the right circumstances.
AS for Landfills? They don't offer the RIGHT circumstance :(
