Cigarette butt litter solutions

Q: What are some good Cigarette Butt Litter Prevention Tips?

1. Pick it up.

2. Education—educate smokers about the need to dispose of cigarette waste properly.

3. Have a "no smoking" policy or allow smoking only in strict designated outdoor areas.

4. Provide ash receptacles at all entry/exit points of buildings, at bus stops, and other areas where people frequently need to discard their cigarettes.

5. Distribute pocket ashtrays, there are many types on the market. The ButtLess Portable Ashtray is hard plastic, airtight, aluminium lined and can be used for years. They can be purchased in bulk and distributed by community groups or businesses as part of a butt litter-prevention campaign.

Q: Are cigarette butts biodegradable?

A: Most cigarette filters are composed of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic. The white fibers you see in a cigarette filter are NOT cotton, but a plastic that can persist in the environment as long as other forms of plastic.

Q: What are cigarettes and filters made of?

A: Cigarettes are made from four components, each of which is describe below.

1. Filters
2. Tobacco
3. Additives
4. Cigarette wrapper
Cigarettes today are typically 85 or 100 mm long, and have diameters of about 8 mm. Their filters are usually 20 to 30 mm long, so a typical cigarette has 55 to 80 mm of tobacco.

Q: Cigarettes Butt Litter—Why So Many?

A: Cigarette butts accumulate in the environment due to:

Q: What are the IMPACTS of Cigarette Litter?

A: The impacts of cigarette litter are many (the main ones are)

1. Toxic chemicals leak out of cigarette butts and can kill small animals and fish
2. Fires (destroys habitats for insects and small animals, homes; Economic costs of accidental fires)
3. Ingestion by children and small animals which mistake butts for food
4. Cost of cleaning up litter & lost revenue from visitors

Q: Why are people careless in discarding cigarette butts but not other forms of trash?

A: While most people are in fact intolerant of most forms of litter, many people don't seem to see cigarette filters/butts as litter. Smokers incorrectly believe that cigarette filters are made of biodegradable cotton. In fact, cigarette filters are made of plastic cellulose acetate, and take many years to decompose.

Q: Who's to blame?

A: Unfortunately it is a foolish sentiment to blame the tobacco manufacturers. That would suggest it is okay to blame the manufacturers of all consumables for other litter and of course, that doesn't make sense. The reality is it has gone to far to lay blame anywhere but work together for a solution before irreparable damage is done.

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