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Is it true that disposing of baby diapers is illegal?

From cloth diaper advocates I've often heard that it is technically illegal to dispose of human waste in the trash can, therefore they argue that most American mothers are breaking the law by dumping disposal poo-filled diapers in the trash. Can someone verify this? LOL

Public Comments

1. no its not illegal..if it was i would be in jail and the trash man would skip our trash =) breast feeding advocates say my baby is going to die from formula and that isn't true either.....funny stuff!
2. No...it isn't illegal!!!!!
3. It's not illegal perse, as in no one is going to come to your house and arrest you. But it's true. When my husband and I moved to our new house and we signed up for trash service, we were given do's and don'ts and what kind of trash is OK and what's not. One of the don't is human waste. Obviously I'm not going to save up the dirty diaper and haul them to a landfill myself!
4. I don't know, but I use common sense about it and if we are out I have old plastic grocery bags and put the dirty diaper in it, then throw out in my personal trash when I get home...(I normally tend to change her in the car on trips) I use the same method at home. On some questions there are advocates, but I never got flack from cloth diaper people and I have gotten flack from lactivists, but no one ever told me my child was going to die...? In one ear and out the other.
5. I know that disposing of human waste into landfills is against the WHO guidelines...but not sure about it being illegal. I have heard that it is, though I cannot find any clear-cut answers. Will keep searching. I do know, though, that you are supposed to shake off the solid waste from a disposable diaper into the toilet. Says so right on the side of the packages. But I am sure that slim to none actually follow that.
6. Here's what I keep coming across over and over again: "Dumping human waste into landfills violates the World Health Organization guidelines and is technically illegal. Depositing feces laden disposable diapers into landfills creates a potential biohazard. There is the risk leakage which could cause the contamination of our drinking water with bacteria and live viruses. Fortunately, Landfills are fairly well constructed in North America and the risk of contamination is more of an issue in developing countries. Disposable diaper packaging contains instructions on the proper disposal of the feces. The inner liner is supposed to be removed and flushed away." http://www.mylilmiracle.com/articles.htm I guess you could double check with the WHO to substantiate the claim. It's not a bad idea to flush the diaper contents out first before disposing, although it's kind of hard with breastfed infants because the poop is so runny and watery anyway. Not much to "dump out."
7. Guess I am breaking the law then.That is ridiculous,true or not.Just as ridiculous as people telling you your child will die or be stupid & sick from drinking formula.If it was illegal I would be in jail Im sure lol..;)
8. That is just ridiculous! If it was illegal to dispose of diapers in the trash then why would they even make them!?! Man,people are just truly crazy these days!!
9. LOL? That is ridiculous. They say that a baby contributes to up to one ton in 1-2 years in disposable diapers. I believe that the government would have a lot of mothers in jail if this was enforcable. Throw your diapers away. They wouldn't be allowed to make diaper genies and things like that. Tell the incinerator to prove it was your baby's dirty diaper if it ever came that far. I am actually switching to cloth diapers but only because my daughter has eczema and can't handle the disposables. Try these all-natural diapers if you want to feel better about trash. They are better for the baby, too. I found them at target. They are the same price/quantity as pampers and huggies. http://www.naty.com/naty.aspx
10. I'm sure if you and your husband started using the trash instead of the toilet, someone would have something to say about it. However, there is nothing about diapers. If there was I'd be one of the firsts to go cause I have three in diapers right now lol. That is most of my trash!!
11. Good to hear from you Veritas, and I trust you and the baby are doing well. We've come a long way since Eden, where Adam & Eve used a bush; Israel was required to have a community spade to bury waste, Muslims could only use a specific number of rocks to clean themselves if water wasn't available to wash. Then the toilet, invented by Thomas Crapper, caused a curse as discharge tubes spewed waste into the streets. In the U.S., outhouses are still legal in most rural areas, and now! What to do with a babies waste? Well, to answer your question, call your municipal disposal system for their recommendations, but if you want to go back to Eden, tear the liner from the diaper, plant a few in a hole, and put a tomato seedling on top. When the sanitation employee questions you, or environmentalist complains of our polluted world, serve them a sliced tomato sandwich before telling them you've gone GREEN. Shalom, peace in Jesus, Ben Yeshua