Michael Meacher has put waste prevention at the top of the agenda for the UK's waste management policy and praised real nappy schemes for helping transform the culture of Britain away from a throwaway society.

Speaking at a conference hosted by Women's Environmental Network (WEN) and MEL in Birmingham on 10th February, 'Reduce Waste, Save Money, Promote Real Nappies', the Minister for the Environment said increasing the number of schemes promoting real nappies was a key recommendation of the Government Strategy Unit's waste report¹. And he reassured current schemes by announcing that the Treasury has agreed to provide transitional funding for projects supported by the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme, which is being wound up at the end of March².

Mr Meacher told the conference: "Increasing waste volumes are causing significant growing damage to the environment. Landfill currently produces up to 25% of all UK methane emissions. And of course, methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, vastly more potent than normal CO₂ molecules. Reducing these emissions will have a very high beneficial effect on climate change. Moreover, landfill sites are becoming increasingly scarce particularly in the South East and North West. More of these sites and/or residential waste treatment facilities will be required, unless greater efforts are made to reduce the volumes of waste. As I keep on saying, most people think it is all about the amount that goes to landfill, the amount that is incinerated that nobody likes, or recycling, reuse, recovery. It isn't, there is a fourth one, and the fourth one is avoiding the creation of waste in the first place. That is the most important objective of waste management policy."

With Landfill Tax set to rise from £13 to £35 per tonne, waste to landfill is an ever more pressing issue for local government.

Mr Meacher praised WEN for their work in promoting the use of real nappies to reduce the numbers of disposables going to landfill. "I do have a really high regard for Women's Environmental Network and I think they are a very effective organisation. I think there is a sense of vision, and determination (which is rare in those who have vision) actually to change things on the ground in terms of sustainable waste management and I think that is a very important role and I look forward very much to working closely with them in the future."

Currently nearly three billion nappies are thrown away in the UK every year. Disposable nappies make up half the rubbish of families with one baby. So families can make a major contribution to waste prevention by using real nappies.

The Minister for the Environment stressed the importance of encouraging a cultural shift away from a 'throwaway society' and said: "…switching to reusable nappies is an important symbol of behaviour change. Making that switch to recycling, reuse and recovery, I think, is an absolutely crucial issue in waste management at this time. Minimising waste in one area, for example the use of reusable nappies, would hopefully lead people to consider what other changes they or we (I don't think I want to exclude any of ourselves, certainly not me) [can make] to minimise their waste."

The innovative West Sussex Real Nappy Initiative was praised for its cash-back incentive scheme which was entirely financed from savings made on disposal costs and Mr Meacher acknowledged the value in the variety of the Real Nappy Week Award winning nappy promotional partnership schemes.³ He encouraged the organisations and individuals working in real nappy projects and stressed the need for more work in this area and more information on the alternatives to disposables.

For photographs or further information contact Elizabeth Hartigan or Liz Sutton,
Women's Environmental Network, PO Box 30626, London E1 1TZ
Telephone: 020 7481 9004, Email: nappies@wen.org.uk

Full details of Michael Meacher's speech can be found here.

NOTES TO EDITORS

¹. 'Waste Not Want Not', published by the Government Strategy Unit, November 2002, made 34 recommendations, including 'greater use of real nappies'. It proposed converting 550,000 households, 24% of households with children aged three and under, to real nappy use. This would reduce waste by 200,000 tonnes over three years.
². Mr Meacher said the Treasury is to provide conditional funding for one year for waste management and recycling projects currently funded by the LTCS. The funding will be administered by Entrust and applications must be made by 31/3/03. Entrust helpline: 0161 972 0203.
³. Further details of real nappy promotional schemes all around the UK are available on www.wen.org.uk/nappypartnerships

Real Nappy Week - 7th to 13th April 2003
The annual focus for the UK's leading waste prevention campaign, Real Nappy Week 7th -13th April 2003 is jointly run by Women's Environmental Network and the Real Nappy Association.

Waste Reduction
8 million nappies are thrown away every day in the UK. With the cost to each local authority in hundreds of thousands of pounds per year on disposal (Bristol City, for example, spends £500,000 per year) it is not surprising that nappy schemes now play a key role in local authorities' waste strategies. These costs are set to rise considerably, almost treble.

Cost
You can kit out your baby in real nappies on the high street for under £60. This includes all the nappies and waterproof covers you will need for the whole of your baby's nappy wearing life. The same amount of money will only buy ten to twelve weeks of disposables. Even taking into account the total cost of laundering nappies at home (about £50 per year) the savings are still considerable.

Health
Why put your baby's bottom in a synthetic chemical environment when you could choose a natural product? Disposable nappies are made of superabsorbent chemicals, paper pulp and plastics while real nappies use natural fabrics. If you want the best solution, free of pesticides and other synthetic chemicals, organic cotton and hemp nappies and organic wool waterproof overpants are available at reasonable cost.

Useful contacts:
The Real Nappy Project, Women's Environmental Network, PO Box 30626, London E1 1TZ. Tel: 020 7481 9004 e-mail: nappies@wen.org.uk

The Real Nappy Association, PO Box 3704, London SE26 4RX. www.realnappy.com Tel: 020 8299 4519
Provides information on where to obtain cloth nappies. Send a large SAE with two stamps on it for a FREE parents' information pack.

National Association of Nappy Services (NANS), Tel: 0121 693 4949, www.changeanappy.co.uk
NANS members offer local delivery and collection of freshly laundered cotton nappies for parents, childminders, nurseries and hospitals. Also suitable for adult incontinence.