Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Question 15: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he intends to initiate a campaign to promote and encourage parents of babies and small children to use alternatives to disposable nappies, such as nappy laundering services, biodegradable or compostable nappies; and his views on including schemes to make such alternatives accessible and cost-effective, in addition to communication campaigns in such an initiative. [9580/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Race Against Waste campaign, funded by my Department, in advising the public on easy ways to reduce waste at home, suggests using a nappy laundry service and saving disposable nappies for holidays or long journeys. This advice is intended to encourage people to reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfill. It also encourages people to consider the environmental impact of their lifestyle choices and to adopt more sustainable habits and actions. The current campaign is nearing completion and my Department will be reviewing the issues to be considered for future campaigns directed towards waste reduction.

In considering what advice might be given in relation to nappies in the future, careful consideration will be given to a study published by the UK Environment Agency in June 2005 on the Life Cycle Assessment of Disposable and Reusable Nappies. This found no significant difference between the overall environmental impacts of the different systems studied in the UK. Disposable nappies take a long time to decay when disposed of to landfill. Reusable nappies reduce demand on landfill but impact on the environment in other ways through the water, detergents and energy used in washing and drying them. The published study is available on-line at www.environment-agency.gov.uk. The effects of the study will hopefully be to encourage those manufacturing nappies of all types to develop more sustainable products and thus reduce the overall impact of their products on the environment.