I second (or third) the flats, and this may not be a popular opinion, but the reason I love the flats, other than cost, is that you can bleach them. People don't do this as often anymore, but there's nothing that is more efficient and easy to get rid of the stinks and stains. You don't even have to use that much bleach - just a few tablespoons. I would argue that it is also more environmental, especially if you live in a drought stricken area. I live in the Midwest where water is plentiful, and even I felt damned guilty by all the water it took to strip diapers. Really, it's ridiculous how much hot and cold water you have to use. And sometimes it doesn't even work!
Of course you can't do this with synthetic fabrics. I use some Fuzzi Bunz, but overall I think cotton is where it's at for my baby's bum. I have to admit that on the third we have used shamefully few of our cloth diaper stash. At this point, it's pure money when we use them, since we've already made back the cost of the diapers on kid one. But life has been stressful and I've had health problems, and well, you do what you can.
In general, we all do what we can. If disposable ends up being best for you, it's okay. If you are this mindful of the environmental costs of what you do, I'm sure you already do a lot of conservation.