How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint...
Baby Care
by Joanna Yarrow
ooking after a baby is one of the most fulfilling - and exhausting - things most of us will ever do. As you celebrate your child’s milestones, keep one eye on the carbon impact of caring for him or her, and do what you can to minimize it.
Make your own organic baby food using locally (or home-) grown fruit and vegetables. A batch of pureed fruit and veggies frozen in small containers will last for ages. It will be fresher, cheaper, and tastier than store-bought versions, and is quick and easy to make.
Lend, borrow, and swap baby equipment. Babies grow out of clothes and other equipment at an alarming rate - usually well before they’re worn out. Bargains are often available in thrift stores and nearly-new sales and on websites such as Freecycle and eBaby.
The Big Diaper Debate. Opinions vary about the relative environmental impacts of disposable versus reusable diapers, but both are significant. Whichever you choose, make sure you’re minimizing their impact:
- Reusable diapers score well on waste, but require a lot of energy for washing, so choose the lowest temperature possible, and avoid using the tumble dryer. Even better, use a diaper-laundering service, which is more efficient than home washing.
- Disposable diapers require huge amounts of oil and paper to make and take centuries to decompose in landfill. So if you use disposables, choose a brand that uses materials from sustainable forests; even better, choose biodegradable diapers and have the used one composted, as they won’t break down in landfill.
TIPS, INFO, AND INTERESTING FACTS- Studies suggest that about 70% of parents become more interested in environmental issues following the birth of their baby.
- Babies typically get through more than 5,000 diapers before they’re toilet trained.
- Disposable diapers take up to 500 years to decompose, and it takes a cup of crude oil to produce the plastic for just one diaper – around 8 barrels of oil per child.
- Diaper-laundering services use around 30% less energy and 40% less water than home washing.
- Using reusable diapers during the first 2 ½ years of a baby’s life generates around 1,250 lb. of greenhouse gases; using disposables generates about 1,450 lb.
- Use washable baby wipes – either bought or homemade from old material – rather than disposables.
- In the Netherlands, disposable diapers are composted in industrial systems and the resulting methane is collected for use as fuel.
Excerpted from:
How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint by Joanna Yarrow (c) 2008. Used with permission of Chronicle Books LLC, San Francisco, www.chroniclebooks.com. Available in stores in May.
