A critical view of applying life cycle assessment on disposable diapers in a rural context

Abstract

The environmental impacts of disposable diapers in comparison to reusable diapers have been a matter of interest within the life cycle assessment (LCA) community for many years. However, the majority of LCAs have been conducted in developed countries with well-developed waste management infrastructure. This study takes a critical view of the application of LCA to evaluate the environmental impacts of disposable diapers in rural areas. In the study area, the majority of diapers were openly dumped (43.8%), sent to unsanitary landfills (26.1%) or burned (18.6%). The production phase contributed the most to the majority of impact categories, excluding freshwater exotoxicity, marine exotoxicity and human carcinogenic toxicity. These impacts were instead dominated by end-of-life impacts and also had the highest relative significance when normalisation was conducted. The lack of and/or poor waste management has resulted in the end of life of diapers being a significant environmental risk. However, current life cycle impact methodologies are not able to fully cover the scope of impacts presented by mismanaged diaper waste. This study demonstrates the importance of geographical contexts when conducting diaper LCAs wherein, in some scenarios, it may be necessary to include impacts beyond the scope of a traditional LCA.

Significance:

• This is the first LCA conducted on diapers in the rural context of Africa.
• The majority of impacts were attributed to the production of disposable diapers.
• The majority of disposable diapers were dumped or sent to unsanitary landfills.
• However, LCA cannot take into consideration improper disposal, giving an incomplete picture of the environmental impacts.