A billion trees are cut down annually to manufacture disposable diapers.
Globalization encourages disposable products over reusable options
2 billion disposable diapers go to waste in Canada each year. That’s 250,000 tons of waste buried in sanitary landfills
It is estimated that 300 to 500 years are necessary for a disposable diaper to decompose
Many viruses can survive for a two-week period in a disposable diaper, therefore when thrown in a land-fill, these viruses can leach out of the diaper and contaminate the ground and water nearby.
Sodium polyacrylate is used in the disposable diaper to make them more absorbent. It is the same substance, which was removed from tampons because it was discovered that there was a link with it and toxic shock syndrome
No study has been done on the long-term effects of the sodium polyacrylate, when it is in constant contact with the reproductive organs of the babies, for possibly the first two years of life.
The average child will go through 5,300 disposable diapers in his or her life time . It takes 440-880 lbs. of fluff pulp and 286 lbs. of plastic (including packaging) per year to supply a single baby with disposables. Disposable diapers are the third largest single product in waste system following newspapers and beverage containers. Regions that recycle, find that disposable diapers contribute to a large portion of the garbage collected.
Landfills cannot properly decompose disposable diapers. They don’t break down and become mummified, keeping their original form.
Single use disposable diapers use 37% more water than home laundered.
Disposable diapers use 37% more water than home laundered cloth diapers. Washing cloth diapers at home uses 50-70 gal. of water every three days. .
In Canada and the US >20,000,000,000 disposables are discarded into landfill sites each year!
People are better informed now about the impact our life choices on the environment. We need to decide to make the correct choices to improve the quality of life and future of our children.br>
