Parents could soon be able to recycle their baby’s dirty nappies

Aound 3 billion nappies are thrown into landfills each year.

By the time a little one is potty-trained they have gone through an estimated 4000-6000 nappies which are then thrown into landfills or burnt, which has a lasting impact on the environment.

For every nappy that is thrown away, it takes hundreds of years to degrade- meaning they will long outlive the babies that used them. What a thought.

To absorb a baby’s wee and poop, nappies contain sodium polyacrylate, which has absorbent jelly-like crystals that do not break down easily, as well as other plastics like phthalates.

But in order to combat this issue, eco-friendly baby care company Pura has announced a novel idea and is launching a new scheme in England, to recycle nappies for the first time ever.

The mission is simple. To make nappy recycling available to all UK parents to save waste. And the best bit? They pick them up curbside so you don’t have to go much further than your front door. Parents have enough to do.

The pilot will start in Bristol and will begin with an initial six-month trial period.

Guy Fennell, Pura founder, explains the knock-on effect this will have by recycling more nappies.

‘We’ve calculated that if the three billion nappies used each year in the UK were 100% recycled, it would be the same as removing 72,000 cars from our roads annually,’ he said.

‘We know that nappy collection and recycling works, but it requires investment and legislation change to roll out the service outside of Wales.’

The nappy recycling service has already been used in Wales, by Nappicycle, which started in 2009 as a recycling facility for families.

Rob Poyer, NappiCycle founder, feels the concept provides a low-impact, cost-efficient nappy recycling solution, which will not be rolled out in England.

‘As a company, we give our customers 100% diversion from the traditional landfill disposal method as well as providing the added element of recovery and recycling.

‘What has traditionally been viewed as a waste product has now become a resource.’

Throughout the project costs and carbon impact will be among the outcomes that are closely monitored, and it is also supported by well-known supermarket brand Asda, which is joining forces with Pura.

Once the nappies are collected in Bristol, they will be taken to Nappicycle in Wales where they will be recycled using a special process. The recovered cellulose and plastic fibres can be repurposed for other uses such as notice boards, panelling, insulation under laminate flooring and other insulations.

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