Jun 11

Jun 11 BUTTS vs The Environment

It’s obvious that cigarettes aren’t good for our health, but just how much do they effect the health of the planet? Today we’ll be deep diving into the environmental impact of cigarette butts. Just keep in mind that everything discussed is not counting the manufacturing, smoke, or effect from the other portions of the cigarette.

Only. The. Butts.

General Waste Info

An estimated 6.5 trillion cigarettes are sold around the world each year.

Can you guess how many of those on average are actually disposed of properly? 2 trillion. That is less than 1/3 of the total amount.

That leaves around 4.5 trillion cigarette butts to be tossed into the environment EACH YEAR. Even with each butt weighing only 0.0004 lbs, this is nearly 1.8 billion pounds of butts improperly disposed of each year.

Negative Impact

They aren’t biodegradable.
Many smokers and non-smokers alike have fallen into this misinformation trap of thinking filters are made of natural fibers, but the fibrous texture is deceiving. Cigarette filters are actually made out of a compound called Cellulose Acetate. This means that the filters will continue breaking down into micro-plastics and become nearly impossible to dispose of.
The cigarette companies don’t help this situation at all. In fact, they want smokers to believe this lie so they think they aren’t making as bad of an impact on the earth. The companies have even been known to make misleading information about the biodegradability of the filters.
They cause mass contamination.
The butt’s whole job is to filter out the toxins from the cigarette itself. Because of that, they are full of chemicals harmful to humans, animals, and plants alike. These chemicals then leach into the environment they are dropped and travel into, effecting all forms of life in their path. These contaminants have even been shown to inhibit plant growth. Aside from the chemicals, the actual fibers are easily broken down into micro-plastics, making them much hard to clean and filter from the food/water systems. Fibers from butts have actually been found in “clean” water we drink like bottled water.
They cost a fuck ton to clean up.
Clean up of the butts cost local governments millions of dollars each year. Imagine what that money could be spent on if this wasn’t an issue. Not to mention, cigarette butts are a major cause of fires in the US. Not only does it cost a high amount in property damage, but also in human lives, animals lives, and millions of acres of habitat and natural loss.
They are being replaced by something just as bad, e-cigarettes.
E-cigarettes, juuls, and vape pens have an impact similar to that of cigarette butts. The cartridges are extremely hard to dispose of correctly since they are considered electronic and hazardous waste. Thoroughly rinsing the cartridges is required for proper disposal in the trash. As of now, there is currently no recycling program available for these products.

What can I do to help?

Obviously, the best thing you can do is stop using them, but I know that’s much easier said than done and just not an option for some folks. So here are some alternative options you can do to help stop cigarette butt pollution:

Stop littering.
If you currently smoke, make sure all your butts are disposed of properly. Also, pass this info on to your friends who smoke!
Clean them up.
If you see them, dispose of them safely! You can even target specific problematic areas near you in a trash cleanup. (Always practice safe techniques including gloves or tools as necessary)
Contact local community to ensure there are appropriate disposal facilities.
If you notice a lack of disposal facilities or a problematic amount of butts in your community, contact the appropriate points of contact to help dissolve the issue.
Support policy changes that demand biodegradable/compostable filters.
There is an entire movement around this issue. If you’d like to get involved, search groups demanding this change on a political level or find ways to do it yourself or with your group!

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Thank you so much for reading! I hope you got value from this information and it opened your eyes a bit more about just how impactful something so small can be.