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Four million disposable diapers are discarded every day in Canada. In the US, it’s 50 million.

I’m a little ashamed to admit that to date we’ve used disposables on all three of our kids. Cloth diapers and diaper services are not something we’ve ever seriously entertained — partly out of laziness, but mostly due to what I’d call the ick factor. Now, thanks to a Christmas Twitter giveaway from eco friendly baby outfitters bo bébé lifestyle, I’m trying out a third option on my 1-year-old: a starter set of eco chic g diapers.

According to Environment Canada, while disposable diapers have made some recent progress toward becoming less environmentally damaging, they still have a significant footprint in terms of landfill space and use of natural resources. Cloth diapers were replaced by disposable as the standard North American choice in the 1960s. Before then everyone used cloth. Although cloth diapers have a smaller production footprint, are reusable and reduce solid waste, they have raised other environmental concerns, mostly in terms of water and energy used in the cleaning process.

G diapers are a hybrid diapering system consisting of a reusable, stylish (I suppose) and durable outer shell, a washable inner liner, and a biodegradable disposable diaper pad insert. It sounds complicated, but it’s actually a simple, practical design that offers parents a few choices in terms of disposal. Soiled diaper pads can be broken up in the toilet and flushed away or they can be thrown in the trash, and wet diapers can also be composted at home.

I’m only two changes into the g diaper experience, but I’ve already had the dubious pleasure of using them in the two standard scenarios. They’re only slightly more work than a disposable, but the difference is negligible, and it definitely feels good to know that it won’t still be sitting somewhere in a land fill 200 years from now. The big challenge with these diapers though is the price. In the US, they run about 50% more than disposables. I could accept that premium in exchange for the environmental benefits, but in Canada the price story is far worse. Shipping fees on a carton of 108 g diaper refills is more than $50 US.

For now, that price difference is too much for me to swallow, especially considering that the other green option is actually cheaper than disposables. So, I’m going to use up the remaining few of our diaper pads and shelve these puppies until g diapers or another comparable brand are able to get into Canadian stores at an affordable price. According to the company that may happen later this summer. I’ll keep you posted.

5 interesting diaper facts from Environment Canada
1. Even disposable diapers should be emptied into the toilet so that the waste can be properly treated.
2. In the first two years, the average baby will require between 5,000 to 7,000 diaper changes.
3. Disposable diapers in landfills can prevent water from soaking to the ground.
4. Washing a load of diapers once or twice a week is roughly equivalent to flushing a toilet five times a day for a week.
5. Over four million disposable diapers are discarded in Canada per day.