Tip o’ the Day: This Butt’s For You
Smoking, it's bad for everyone's health. Besides the drawbacks of the smoke, cigarettes also create another issue - litter. Yesterday we talked about promotional flyers - one item that most people don't have an issue with tossing on the ground. Cigarette butts, however, certainly take the cake when it comes to a socially accepted practice of littering.
It is estimated that several trillion cigarette butts are littered worldwide each year. In the US, and around the world, it is wins the "most littered item" prize.
The butts are harmful to wildlife and have been found in the stomachs of fish, birds, and whales. Plus, those toxic chemicals that the filter was designed to keep from entering the body, stay there - until, of course, the butt reaches a body of water and the chemicals start to leak out. Tossed cigarette butts are also the cause of countless fires.
So what can we do?
If you are a smoker, dispose of your butts properly. You might even want to consider a pocket ashtray. As The Smoking Section says, "Considerate smokers don't litter. Those who do deserve criticism as much as any other litterer."
If you don't smoke, but know someone who does, and litters along with it, send them an anonymous email letting them know the facts.
We can all do our part by picking up litter, including cigarette butts, and getting them to a trash can. Better that we do it than to allow the litter to continue to harm the environment.
Rebecca says: I hope that some of you readers will send some anonymous emails (or just speak with your friends directly). I'd love to hear your thoughts in this issue. Leave a comment!
Resources:
Tags: butt, cigarette, litter, smoking, trash
February 27th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
Thank you for this post! It drives me nuts when folks (especially the environmentally inclined) toss their butts on the ground. Ugh.
February 27th, 2007 at 9:12 pm
I don’t know why people would possibly think it’s acceptable to throw butts on the ground, when it’s not acceptable to throw anything else on the ground. I smoked for years, but I was always flabbergasted when fellow smokers would toss their butts. I love the idea of the anonymous email. There’s also a 1-800 number you can call to turn in litterbugs.
February 27th, 2007 at 9:50 pm
The practice of throwing cigarette butts on the ground has always amazed me. Like the poster before me, I see people who otherwise wouldn’t dream of littering leaving cigarette butts around. It’s just such a completely unthinking habit.