Members of the council's Environment Scrutiny Committee heard that Knowaste could help reduce the use of landfill in the area by melting down nappies into plastics that could be reused.

Councillor Neil Harden said to the committee: "As a parent with young children I know only to well how much nappy waste is produced that goes straight to landfill.

"As a forward-looking council we should investigate any avenues that can help reduce our use of landfill. This is the kind of company we should be looking to work with and I hope other local councils will join with us."

Currently more than 700,000 tonnes of used nappies and incontinence pads are put into landfill sites every year across the UK, and they tend to make up between two and three percent of average household waste.

The Canadian company is opening a plant in the Midlands later this year, and would like to do the same in Hertfordshire. It is offering the recycling service for no more than is charged by current landfill providers.

CEO of the company Roy Brown, addressing the committee, said: "This is one of the remaining waste streams that hasn't been addressed. We think this marketplace is ready for what we are doing.

"Having depot facilities dotted around where members of the public can drop off their waste is the quickest, cheapest and most efficient way of doing this. We don't want to go more than 60 or 70 miles in transporting the waste. Smell and noise would not be an issue, but we would need to be in an industrial area."

The company, which powers its plants through the methane obtained through recycling, would create partnerships with logistics providers who would collect and transport the waste.

It would also look to partner organisations such as nursing homes and the NHS who every year bin 200,000 tonnes of pads nationwide.

Chairman of the environment scrutiny committee, Alan Anderson said: "We will request county and district members and officers to pursue the provision of a new plant in Hertfordshire."