While kimbies or amanapkeni are convenient, they are causing irreparable damage to the environment. And in areas of South Africa where there are insufficient waste management services, this is exacerbated by the unique disposal practice of dumping disposable nappies in the bush, burying, or burning them.
For many years, local municipalities have found little to no workable solutions for managing disposable nappies except for landfilling them. Most of the research studies about the disposal of these nappies have been conducted in the global north, but academics have now started carefully scrutinising the situation in South Africa.
A webinar hosted by the One Health Forum and the University of the Western Cape (UWC) recently discussed the local and international life cycle impacts of and alternatives to disposable nappies and wanted to answer the questions, “Who needs to take responsibility for the safe disposal of reusable nappies and who needs to educate the consumer?” The webinar also focused on the new South African research – titled Exploring disposable diaper usage and disposal practices in rural areas, funded by the CSIR Waste Research Development and Innovation Roadmap.
UWC’s Professor Catherina Schenck, DSI/NRF/CSIR SARChI Chair in Waste and Society, Dr Takunda Chitaka, postdoctoral fellow on the Chair and PhD student Charlotte Nell, conducted the South African research in Maruleng and Bushbuckridge municipalities, in the Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces respectively. The study found that three of over 1 600 participants in the study used reusables, while 99 percent used disposables, with just one per cent using both.
Dr Chitaka, a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) specialist, looked at diaper environmental impacts from production, including raw material extraction, manufacturing and then the end of life of the product. She took a critical view of applying an LCA on disposable nappies in a rural context, in collaboration with the Non-Profit Company, Kruger to Canyons Biosphere (K2C) in the Maruleng and Bushbuckridge area.
“The trend towards improper disposal is a consequence of the lack of waste management services in the area. To manage this difficult waste stream, the highest percentage of residents throw their used nappies in the watercourses or bushes or burn or bury them,” said Dr Chitaka.
“Some of it goes to the landfill, with skip bins which are also taken to landfills. Some throw them down pit latrines. All of these factors contribute to the human carcinogenic impact and marine ecotoxicity, which includes water quality,” she explained.
According to the research, 18% of people interviewed have considered reusable nappies. However, this could also pose a problem, as only 37% of respondents have access to clean water every day.
“Disposable nappies are popular because of their convenience factor. It gets around the lack of access to water and unreliable and expensive electricity issues, and is seen as affordable and the ‘modern’ way of doing things,” said Dr Chitaka.
“Communities were concerned about how improper disposal could affect the spread of disease to children, pets and livestock. Dogs scatter them, livestock and pets ingest them, while rivers and groundwater are being contaminated. Harmful pathogens could be leaking into the soil and water supply, affecting the entire ecological system.”
Dr Chitaka noted the importance of manufacturers taking responsibility for consumer education and the proper use and disposal of their products.
“Television adverts of big disposable nappy brands depict happy babies, but there’s no information about product disposal. Fortunately, there is some movement in the packaging space with regard to the on-pack recycling labels.”
The next online webinar is open to the public and will be hosted on 27 July. The guest speaker at the event will be Belinda Langenhoven, a waste management specialist for Environmental Affairs and Development Planning at the City of Cape Town. Waste management stakeholders from various organisations have been invited to attend. A conference planned on disposable nappies and other absorbent products will be hosted in November this year.
In 2021, a report titled Single-use nappies and their alternatives – Recommendations from Life Cycle Assessments was published to assist policymakers with regulations around single-use nappies. The recommendations are mainly geared toward developed countries. The recommendations include:
For single-use nappies:
Ensure adequate waste collection and appropriate disposal of single-use nappies;
Incentivize the absorbent part of nappies to be lightweight and require less materials;
To investigate the potential for bio-based nappies in tandem with the provision of infrastructure for their disposal.
For reusable nappies:
Educate consumers on efficient laundering practices;
Focus efforts on transitioning to low-carbon electricity and ensuring access to water;
Encourage multiple uses of nappies;
Promote nappy service business models;
Support consumers by developing financing solutions to help carry the upfront costs of reusable nappies.
Compostable nappies have also entered the arena, This could be industrial composting or anaerobic digestion or further research in recycling and collection systems.
