Sacramento, USA - An Oakland lawmaker wants to give parents an extra incentive to get their youngsters potty trained: a quarter-cent tax on disposable diapers to promote recycling.

Associated Press reports that Democratic Sen. Don Perata said "In California, we face staggering population growth that will only add to our already overtaxed landfills. Elected officials, policy makers, health professionals, waste haulers, recycling experts and parents agree: disposable diapers just don't belong in our state's landfills, for both environmental and public health reasons."

More than 20 billion diapers were sent to US landfills in 2000, Perata said. He has introduced a bill that would impose a quarter-cent tax on each disposable diaper sold in California to pay for local diaper recycling programs. It would cost families US$12-15 per child each year, apparently.