What Stinks?
A Cradle to Grave Analysis of the
Disposable Diaper
By Rene’ Rodriguez
Race, Poverty, & the Urban Environment
Professor Raquel R. Pinderhughes
San Francisco State University
Spring 2003
Public has permission to use material herein, but only if author, course,
university, and professor are credited.
Introduction
This presentation focuses on the disposable diaper. It
takes you through the cradle to grave life cycle of the diaper,
paying particular attention to the social, environmental, and
public health aspects associated with the diaper.
We start by looking at the history of the diaper and how
it has evolved from its simple roots. We then analyze the raw
materials used to make the disposable diaper, production,
distribution, consumption, and its waste site, all the while
focusing on the harmful impacts these processes have on the
environment and surrounding communities.
Diaper Evolution
TIME
PRODUCT
ABSORBENT
OUTER COVER
Pre-industrial
era
“Primitive” diaper
Grass, moss, leaves,
linen or cotton
Animal skins, swaddling
bands (linen or wool)
Late 1800s
Early diaper
Linen or cotton
Knitted wool
1880
Safety pin
1930s-1960s
Commercial laundering
services
1940s
Modern cloth diaper
Cotton
Rubber pant
1950s
Modern cloth diaper
Cotton
Plastic pant
1961
Disposable diaper
Cellulose
Plastic
Mid-1980s
Disposable diaper
Superabsorbent
material
Plastic
Late 1990s
Disposable diaper
Superabsorbent
material
Breathable cover
(www.cp.pdr.net/hostedfiles/docs/papc_diapers_site/history.htm)
Natural Resources
• Oil
 18 billion disposable diapers used per year in US alone
 It takes one cup of crude oil to make the plastic in one
disposable diaper
• Polyethylene, Polypropylene, Polyurethane, & Polyacrylate
 3.4 billion gallons of oil used annually to manufacture them
 246 lbs of plastic are used to diaper a baby for one year
• Wood (cellulose)
 It takes 200-300 kg of pulp to supply a baby for one year
 Over 250,000 trees are used annually for diapers
(Sanders, 2001)
Oil
Preparing to drill
•
•
•
•
•
The land is cleared, leveled and roads are built
If no source of water is nearby, a well is drilled
A reserve pit is dug and (should be) lined
A hole is dug for the oil rig
More holes are dug for equipment and
employee access
• Sometimes rigs are built on ships
(Freudenrich, 1998)
Oil Drilling Anatomy
(Fruedenrich,1998)
Drilling the Oil
• As crews are drilling, they must cement the hole to keep
it from caving in.
• Once they have reached a final depth, a perforating gun
explosively charges holes into the casing for which oil
can flow.
• A well is made for oil to flow into.
• Acid is pumped down the well and dissolves channels in
the limestone to lead it into the well.
• A fluid containing sand, walnut shells, and aluminum is
used on sandstone.
• Once the oil is flowing, the rig is removed and extraction
begins.
(Freudenrich, 1998)
Extraction
• After the rig is removed, a
pump is put on the head
of the well
• The pump is forced up
and down and the oil is
suctioned up from the
well.
• A second hole is drilled
and steam is injected
under pressure, which
helps to push it up the
well.
(Freudenrich, 1998)
Impacts on Forest
• Forests are harmed even before oil is drilled
 Roads are constructed into remote areas for exploration
 Construction destroys habitats, and roads increase traffic
in fragile areas (Oxfam, 2001)
 Texaco constructed oil roads in Ecuador that opened 2.5
million acres of forest to colonization
• Deforestation
 The Amason Basin has the greatest diversity of plants in
So. America
 Eduador’s rainforests are being cut down by oil corps at a
rate of 340,000 hectares a year
 Animals which indigenous people hunt have migrated
deeper into the forests (Dabbs, 1996)
•
Pollution
of
Water
Drilling produces waste muds and other gross stuff that is
stored in special pits
 Unlined pits leak wasted into water supplies, rivers, and
lakes (Oxfam, 2001)
 Oil placed on roads to prevent dust also flows into rivers
 Drinking, bathing, and fishing water sources in the
Amazon have toxin levels much higher than EPA
standards; fish in gulf have high mercury levels
• Oil spills also poison water
• Effects of water contamination





Increased risks of cancer
Miscarriage
Demititis, fungul infections
Headache and nausea
Dead fish (Dabbs, 1996)
www.panda.org/about-wwf/what_we_d0/freshwater/prolems.cfm
Pollution of Air and Soil
• Oil wells burn off
natural gas polluting
air and making
constant noise
• Gas flares produce
soot which is
deposited on roofs
 Also reduces crop
growth and affects
wildlife
• Rain washes soot off
of the rooftops
 Chemicals in soot can
be detrimental to
soil’s fertility
• Oil spills contaminate
top soil so that plants
can’t grow
(Oxfam, 2001)
Middle Magdalena
• Life in this region of Columbia
 40% unemployed; double national rate
 70% live in poverty
 Violence
• 2 major Guerilla groups condemn foreign control
of oil
• 1000 pipelines blown up since 1986
• In 1998, a village was set on fire, 73 dead
 Pollution
• Great Magdalena River polluted with sewage,
industrial waste from the oil companies
(Dunning, Wirpsa, 2001)
Ethnocide
• The people of Middle Magdalena are just one example of
indigenous peoples all around the world losing their way
of life to the petroleum industry
• Forced emigration
 They must move from their rural homes into slums
due to violence, pollution, and losing land
• Life after leaving
 Children resort to prostitution to support families
 Little medical care
 No reproductive services
 Women in labor having complications turned away
from emergency rooms
• The more wealthy people in the cities mostly have no
idea of the ethnocide going on around them
(www.reliefweb.org, 2003)
Oil Spills
• Oil spills occur during accidents involving tankers,
barges, and pipelines usually when the oil is being
transported to us (www.response.restoration.noaa.gov, 2002)
• Causes of spills




Natural disasters
Carelessness
Illegal dumpers
Equipment breaking
• Pipelines are supposed to be buried to reduce risk of breaking
and spilling
• But they are often above ground and run though villages
(Dabbs, 1996)
Effects of Oil Spills
• Spills can leave soil
economically useless
• Oil floats on water
spreading out into a thin
layer
• Oil destroys insulation of
fur and water repellent in
feathers of animals
• Many animals ingest oil
when they try to clean
themselves
(NOA,2002)
Oil Refining
• Oil is a mixture of small and large molecules
• Separating crude oil
 Oil is boiled; small molecules separate from large
 Large molecules cracked to form smaller ones
 The result is organic chemicals which form building blocks of
plastic
 Other chemicals such as chlorine and lead are added to give
strength, stiffness, etc.
 Building blocks are then heated to form long chains
 This polymerization turns the raw materials into plastic resin
(Montague,1991)
Combustion
• Acid Rain
 Acids form from NO2
and SO2
 They acidify all forms of
precipitation
 Lead, copper, and
aluminum are leached
into drinking water
 Combustion causes
excess nitrogen and
phosphorus in lakes and
coastal waters
 Seafood becomes
contaminated; “dead
zones”
• Climate Change
 Burning of fossil fuels
and land clearing have
increased the level of
green house gases (CO2)
 Droughts are becoming
more severe
 Global weather patterns
are changing
 No. latitude pipelines are
threatened by permafrost
melting
(Epstein, Selver,2002)
Workers’ Conditions
• Injury and chronic disease from exposure to
 Cadmium
 Arsenic
 Cyanide
 Lead
• Leukemia due to exposure to petroleum and
by-products
• Labor and safety rules are usually
inadequate in developing or poor
communities
• Work related deaths in the oil extraction
process is higher than all US industry worker
deaths combined!
(Epstein,Selver, 2001)
Wood
Pulpwood Plantations
• Natural forests are cut down in
favor of plantations
 1.4 million hectares of
forest in Indonesia have
been cut down and replaced
by plantations
 Plantation proponents
believe that by using
plantations, we won’t need
to log natural forests
 But natural forests are used
either way
 Indigenous communities
are displaced
• No comparison between
forests and plantations
 A monocrop plantation
can’t compare with the
diversity (and beauty) that
a natural forest has
 Plantations are treated with
insecticides, herbicides, and
fungicides
 Frequent harvests can leave
land inviable
(Brown, Flavin,2001)
Tree Farm
Pulp wood
• Diapers contain cellulose, Kraft wood pulp
• Kraft pulping
 Bark stripped from trees and chipped
 Wood chips are boiled with caustic soda
 Pulp becomes dark brown and very strong
(Kroesa, 1990)
• Bleaching
 Usually elemental chlorine is used
 Some companies such as Procter & Gamble, and
Kimberly-Clark have switched to other types of
chlorine which reduce discharges by 90%
 However, these levels are still toxic, but too low to
detect
(Brown,Flavin,2000)
Pulp Wood Factory
www.wawickint.com/html/pulp
Harmful Effects of Pulping and
Bleaching
• Pulp and paper industry uses more water to make one ton of
product than any other US industry
• Also has highest intensity levels of emission
• Produces stinky air and sickening water
• Unidentified compounds are produced
• In some Asian nations, there are thousands of mills that have
no treatment systems so untreated “black pulping liquor” is
released into waterways
• Some aquatic life dies right away, while others suffer long term
and make their way up the food chain
• Bleaching also releases dioxins into the air
(Brown, Flavin, 2000)
•
Health Effects of manufacturing
Plastic
and
Paper
Legionaire’s Diease
 Type of pnemonia
 Can be deadly
 Caused by using injection
molding equipment
(www.osha.gov,1984)
• Irritating materials and fumes
 Runny nose and eyes
 Sore throat, cough, asthma
(www.hse.gov.uk/pubs/indg195.htm)
• Polyacrylate
 Female organ problems, slow
wound healing, and weight loss
to employees
(Sanders, 2001)
• Water
 Bad taste
 Employees in Buckeye Mill
(later) told to add powdered
mix for flavor
(Swasy,1993)
• Smell
Pulp and Paper Mill Odors
• Kraft Pulping
 Process produces gaseous sulfur compounds
 Sulfides, ammonia, other organic compounds
 Smell=rotten eggs
 EPA says odors are annoying but not a health concern
 Odors vary depending on processing techniques, wind
direction, temperature
• Health Issues
 When weather causes chemicals to become
concentrated
• Eye and breathing irritations
• Headache and nausea
• People with asthma may have asthma attacks
(EPA says these are not health concerns…???)
(www.dhfs.state.wi.us/eh/HlthHaz/fs/PulpOdors.htm,2000)
• Dioxins
• What are they?
Dioxins
 Dioxin is a general term for hundreds of chemicals
formed by burning chlorine based compounds with
hydrocarbons (www.ejnet.org/dioxin, 2002)
• What do they do?
 They get into the air, then soil and water, and then
our food chain
 They attach and accumulate in our fat cells
 Dioxin is passed onto our children
• Through placenta, and breastfeeding
 We have no defense because it is not metabolized in
our bodies
 It can cause serious health problems at parts per
trillion
(www.acereport.org,2003)
(www.ejnet.org/dioxin,2002)
Harmful Effects of Dioxin
•
•
•
•
Causes cancer
Disrupts hormones
May shrink penis size and sperm count
Miscarriage, reproductive disorders, birth defects,
low birth weight
• Learning disabilities
• Short term memory and attention span
• Damage to nervous and immune systems
(www.acereport.org,2003)
The Buckeye Mill
• A Procter & Gamble pulp mill in Perry, FL near
the Fenholloway River
• Effects on River
 P&G purchased land in 1954, drained areas of river to
plant trees
 Began discharging 50 million gallons of discharge per day
 In 1990, dioxin levels were 1900x the acceptable risk
 Remains worst river in country
 Wells and backyards contaminated
 Shower water leaves film on skin
 Female fish have developed male characteristics because
the pollution causes hormone changes
(Swasy, 1993)
The People of Perry
• P&G shapes all aspects of life there
• Segregation still exists; locals refer to African-Americans
as “niggers”
• Those who grew up drinking the water and eating food
nourished by water now suffer from
 Arthritis, short term memory loss, lung problems
• Free bottled water is now provided by P&G
• They depend on the P&G facility
 P&G provides many jobs; many would go bankrupt without it
 Company gets preferential treatment from local politicians and
law enforcement
 People won’t challenge the company
• In 1990s, a few women who began exposing and challenging their
practices were harassed; one even beaten and raped
(Swasy, 1993)
Production of the
Diaper
Manufacturing Process
• A sheet of pulp is converted into fibers
• The fibers are mixed with a super absorbent
• A pad is formed, compressed and cut into individual
pieces
• Poly material is added at the bottom and nonwoven
at the top
• Hot melt is used to glue it all together
• Elastomers are added for stretch in the waist and leg
cuffs
• Tapes are added and can be adhesive or mechanical
(Velcro)
• Individual diaper pieces are cut, inspected and
stacked for sealing and boxing
(www.giga.com/~cricher/carlos.html)
Diaper Making Machine
(www.giga.com/~cricher/carlos.html)
The Finished Product
(Krafchik,2000)
Components of The Diaper
• Polyethylene: the
outside,breathable,
leakproof
• Polypropylene:
against baby’s skin,
keeps skin dry
• Polyurethane: elastic
on cuffs
• Polyacrylate: Super
Absorbent Polymers,
absorb 30x their
weight
• Cellulose: draws
liquid into the center
• Glue: holds diaper
together, made of
resin and oil
(Krafchik, 2000)
Kimberly-Clark
• Tests on Animals
• Low score, 57, on Human Rights Campaign
2002
 Rates policies on gay and transsexual employers,
consumers, and investors
• One of the companies responsible for hazardous
waste at Chemsol federal superfund site in New
Jersey
(www.responsibleshopper.org)
Picture: (www.thenewparentguide.com/shopping-disposable-diapers.htm)
Proctor & Gamble
• Tests on Animals
• Paid scientists to testify at FDA hearing on the
fat substitute “Olestra”
• Supports pollution secrecy legislation
 Would provide immunity from environmental
crimes if they are self reported
• One of the companies that sued Massachusetts
for preventing companies from doing business
in Burma
(www.responsibleshopper.org)
Picture: (www.pg.com.hr/press/pictures/index.html)
Advertising
• Commercials
 Show features such as stretchy waistbands, more
comfort, cartoon characters
• Coupons
 Sent by mail, in magazines
• Free samples
 By mail
 In Hospitals
• Given to 4 million newborns a year (Swasy, 1993)
Diesel Exhaust
• Most diapers are distributed to our retail stores
by diesel trucks
 Walmart is connected to P&G by computer so
diapers are replenished almost instantaneously
(Swasy,1993)
• What is diesel?
 Diesel fuel is burned in the engine and soot and gases
are released into the air
 Soot consists of tiny particles that are inhaled into
our lungs
 Particles have cancer causing chemicals called Polynuclear
Aromatic Hydrocarbons
 Gases in diesel exhaust
• Nitrous oxide, formaldehyde, sulfer dioxide, carbon dioxide,
carbon monoxide, benzene
(www.asfscme.com)
Harmful Effects of Diesel
• Accounts for 71% of
cancer risk from toxic
air contaminants
• The particles inhaled
stay in your lungs for
a long time which can
lead to corroding
cells and tumor
growth
• The average infant in SF
reaches the EPA’s
acceptable lifetime limit
for exposure to
carcinogens by 19 days
of life
• People who live closer
to areas of high truck
traffic get higher doses
(www.greenaction.org)
Health Effects of Diesel on
Workers
• Those most likely to be exposed to diesel exhaust
 Bridge, tunnel, loading dock workers
 Auto mechanics
 Truck drivers
• Short term effects





Irritation of eyes, nose, throat
Lightheadedness, feeling high
Heartburn
Headache,vomiting
Chest tightness, wheezing
• Long term effects
 Has been linked to lung cancer
 Workers more likely to have chronic respiratory problems, reduced lung
capacity, bronchitis
(www.afscme.org)
Harmful Effects of Wearing
Diapers
• Diaper Rash
 Caused by allergies to chemicals, temperatures from
wearing plastic, and less diaper changes because diaper is
so absorbent it feels dry
 Natural moisture along with urine is absorbed
• Infertility in Males
 Testicles may become hot from wearing diapers and
may not develop normally (Sanders, 2001)
• Toxic Shock Syndrome
 In 1986, a 13 month old Missouri boy and NY girl both
died allegedly from wearing Pamper’s diapers
(Swasy, 1993) Picture:(www.askdrsears.com)
Toxic Shock Syndrome
• TSS became famous in the early 80s when at least 42 women
died from wearing P&G’s Rely tampon (pulled from market)
• Symptoms
 The tampons created a haven for bacteria which produced deadly
toxins
 High fever, sunburn like rash, vomiting
 Victim’s skin peels off hands and feet
 Lungs fill with fluid until suffocation, heart stops beating
• Pamper’s Ultra Diaper introduced in 1986
 Immediately there were complaints of rashes, and beads (Super
absorbent polymers turn into beads when wet)
 Testing showed that carboxylmethyl cellulose that was used in the
Rely tampons was in the diapers
 P&G reformulated but there were still cases up to 1993 and 2 deaths
 SAPs currently in diapers were also in the Rely tampons
(Swasy,1993)
The Grave
Landfills
• How much?
 Diaper is the third
largest consumer item
in landfills
 It equals 30% nonbiodradable waste in
landfills
 2% total municipal
solid waste
 Each baby contributes
1 ton of garbage
(Sanders, 2001)
Decomposition
• Some are up to 85% biodegradable
• However, most are rolled into tight
little balls and put in sealed landfills
• Without air and water, it take
about 500 years for the diaper to
decompose
• Can we compost them?
 Plastic is non compostable
 US has only 20 facilities that could do
this composting
 Many more would have to be
built…NIMBY
(Sanders, 2001)
www.redamedia.com/bubbles/diaper.htm
Health Hazards
• Human waste
 The American Public Health Association advise
that fecal matter should not be put in with the
regular trash because it contaminates ground
water and spreads disease
• Parents should rinse out fecal matter in the toilet
before throwing diaper away (doesn’t happen)
 Five million tons of untreated human waste in
landfills
• There are approximately 100 intestinal viruses
living on the feces
• They could be carried by insects right back to us
(Sanders,2001)
Exposure
• Impacts on Neighborhoods
 Water contamination due to dumping or leaking
liners
 Disposal sites and waste treatment facilities can cause
air pollution and landfills are a breeding ground for
insects and rodents who spread disease
 Preschool children and workers are most impacted
• Direct dumping of untreated waste in water
bodies can make its way up the food chain
• Exposure to certain untreated chemicals can
cause disease and/or death
(www.edugreen.teri.res.in/explore/solwaste/health.htm)
Occupational hazards associated with waste
handling
• Infections
Skin and blood infections resulting from direct contact with waste, and from
infected wounds.
Eye and respiratory infections resulting from exposure to infected dust,
especially during landfill operations.
Different diseases that results from the bites of animals feeding on the waste.
Intestinal infections that are transmitted by flies feeding on the waste.
• Chronic Diseases
Incineration operators are at risk of chronic respiratory diseases, including
cancers resulting from exposure to dust and hazardous compounds.
• Accidents
Bone and muscle disorders resulting from the handling of heavy containers.
Infecting wounds resulting from contact with sharp objects.
Poisoning and chemical burns resulting from contact with small amounts of
hazardous chemical waste mixed with general waste.
Burns and other injuries resulting from occupational accidents at waste disposal
sites or from methane gas explosion at landfill sites.
Source - Adapted from UNEP report, 1996(www.edugreen.teri.res.in/explore/solwaste.health.htm)
The Bottom Line
The disposable diaper doesn’t just originate at the store and then end up
in the garbage. By examining the cradle to grave cycle, we see that the
disposable diaper is harmful at every stage in its life with disproportionate
impacts to those not able to do anything about it. By using the main
components of the diaper, oil and wood, we cause irrevocable damage and
the anthropomorphic and environmental costs are priceless. Most people
who use these disposable diapers are impacted in the smallest ways, with a
minor diaper rash being the only clue that diapers are not healthy. The other
impacts were mostly invisible to us-until now. The most important point
about the grave of the diaper is simply that it has one. Something that is
completely non-reusable is a waste of it’s entire life cycle. All that harm for
what? A product that is used for a few hours and then unsafely thrown out as
a ball of plastic and feces to sit for 500 years.
References
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Brown, Lester R., Flavin, Christopher. State of the World 2000. WW Norton and
Company
Dabbs, Corbett J., Oil Production and Environmental Damage, December 1996,
<www.american.edu/projects/mandala/TED/projects/tedcross/xoilpr15.htm> April
15,2003
Dunning, Thad. Wirpsa, Leslie. Oil Rigged. February 2001: Resource Center of the
Americas. February 20, 2003 <www.americas.org/News/Features/2001
02_Colombia_Oil/20010201_Oil_rigged_in_columbia.asp>
Epstein, R. Paul; Selber, Jesse, Oil: A Life Cycle Analysis of its Health and
Environmental Impacts, The Center for Health and the Global Environment, 2002
<www.med.harvard.edu/chge/oil.html> May 6, 2003
Fruedenrich, Craig C. Phd, How Oil Drilling Works, How Stuff Works, 1998,
<www.howstuffworks.com/oil-drilling2.htm> May 6, 2003
Krafchik, Bernice, Disposable Diapers: Layer by Layer, 2000,
<www.cp.pdr.net/hostedfiles/docs/papc_diapers_site/layer.htm> February 12, 2003
Kroesa, Renate. Greenpeace Guide to Paper. Vancouver, BC: Greenpeace
International, 1990
Oxfam, Environmental and Health Effects of Mining and Oil Extraction, May 24,
2001<www.oxfamerica.org/advocacy/art407.html> April 15, 2003
• Sanders, Heather L., The Diaper Drama: An Online Drama of
Disposable versus Cloth Diapers. 2001. Punkin-Butt. February 10,
2003 <www.punkinbutt.com>
• Swasy, Alecia, Soap Opera:The Inside Story of Procter & Gamble.
New York:Random House Inc, 1993
• <www.acereport.org/emissions.html> Dioxin Exposure, ACE 2003
• <www.afscme.org/health/faq-dies.htm>, Diesel Exhaust, American
Federation of Employees, April 15, 2003
• <www.dhfs.state.wi.us/eh/HlthHaz/fs/PulpOdors.htm> Human
Health Hazards-Pulp and Paper IndustryOdors, 2000 (May 22,
2003)
• <www.edugreen.teri.res.in/explore/solwaste.health.htm>, Health
Impacts of Solid Waste, May 1, 2003
• <www.egnet.org/dioxin> Dioxin Homepage. Action Center 2002
(May 10, 2003)
• <www.greenaction.org/stopdiesel/factsheet.shtml> Action Alert:
Diesel Fact Sheet. Green Action. February 21, 2003
• <www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg195.htm> Health and Safety Executive,
1998
• <www.giga.com/~cricher/carlos.html> Manufacturing Process of a
Disposable Diaper. May 18, 2003
• <www.osha.gov> Osha Hazard Information Bulletion, 1998 (May 16,
2003)
• <www.reliefweb.com> May 15, 2002, UN High Commission for
Refugees. May 15, 2002
• <www.response.restoration.noaa.gov/kids/spills.html> What’s the
Story on Oil Spills?, Office of Response and Restoration, 2002,
April 15, 2001