Up to 5,000 cigarette butts are dropped down a single drain every year in Britain^, according to new figures from Keep Britain Tidy. The environmental charity notes that with over 1,000,000 drains in the UK, this presents an unprecedented volume of cigarette butts ending up in UK waterways. They are teaming up with a London pub, the White Swan, to tackle this issue.
The initiative comes as the latest data from the environmental charity shows that cigarette butts make up 56% of all litter found in drains^, with the hospitality industry having one of the highest volumes of littered cigarette butts outside their premises.
In the UK, many drains link directly to local watercourses, rivers and the sea. Cigarette butts are made out of plastic, which means they are non biodegradable and they also contain over 7,000 different chemicals**. Just one cigarette butt can contaminate up to 1,000 litres of water^^, and, every year 300,000 tons of microplastics are discharged into natural water bodies across the world”.
Research has shown that the toxins from cigarette butts can be ingested by small mammals, fish, birds and more, reducing the reproductive rate of some animals, which could lead to a reduction in biodiversity and wildlife.
The study of 1,000 smokers revealed that 38% have disposed of their butts down a drain, with key reasons for doing so cited as being in a rush (23%) and believing that everyone dose it (15%). A third (30%) of smokers believe that this is an appropriate way of getting rid of it, while 47% of smokers* are unaware that cigarette butts littered into drains end up in waterways, seas and on beaches causing significant environmental harm. A further 30% incorrectly believe cigarette butts are biodegradable, while 34% thought that dropping them down drains accelerated the breakdown of butts.
Campaign ambassador Johnny Vegas comments: “It seems a lot of smokers don’t realise they’re doing more harm than good by disposing of their butts in drains. I was one of them! I was once fined for throwing my ciggie down a drain. But it is littering and does have a big impact – so make sure you use a bin or a pocket ashtray to dispose of them correctly.”
With the problem so significant around pubs, one London establishment is tackling the issue head on and putting measures in place to stop cigarette-related litter. The pub in Twickenham has temporarily changed its name from ‘The White Swan’ to ‘The Poisoned Swan’, to raise awareness of the environmental impact of incorrectly discarding butts in drains, and Keep Britain tidy has provided materials and interventions to help change its customers’ behaviour. Campaign ambassador, Johnny Vegas, also dropped in at the pub to show his support for the initiative.
