New research from environmental charity Hubbub reveals just over 1 in 4 smokers (28%) are aware that cigarette butts are made from plastic.
Of the 1,500 smokers surveyed by Censuswide, over a third (36%) mistakenly think cigarette butts contain cotton wool when in fact the white fluffy material is made from a type
of plastic (cellulose acetate) which once smoked, can release thousands of chemicals.
Cigarette butts are the most littered item in the world and cause serious damage to the environment by leaching out toxic chemicals over a number of years but they don’t get the same attention as other plastic
litter which is arguably less harmful.
The survey showed over a third of smokers (34%) believe it takes less than a year for a cigarette butt to decompose but the truth is it doesn’t ever decompose and can take up to 10 years to start breaking
down into microplastics. More than a quarter (28%) admit to dropping their cigarette butts down the drain – a direct route to our water ways and oceans.
Hubbub today took over the streets surrounding Stratford Station, the busiest train station in the UK, by installing eye-catching interventions to raise awareness of their plastic content and help cigarette
litter be “seen”. This included giant billboards, ballot bins, newspaper stands and “talking butts” to catch the attention of passers-by.
In addition, Hubbub is today calling on councils and industry to do more to raise awareness about what cigarette butts and filters are made from and help encourage smokers to dispose of their butts responsibly.
55% of smokers surveyed say there are not enough cigarette bins at bus stops, 51% said the same for taxi ranks and 51% said the same for outside supermarkets.
The location of bins is key.
Scientists from Ellipsis Earth who track cigarette litter using cutting-edge mapping software reveal that ashtrays placed in data-highlighted hotspots such as park benches, bus stops and road junctions can reduce littering of cigarettes by up to 90%. In an
average town, that’s approximately 40,000 cigarettes a week being captured and correctly disposed of instead of washing into waterways and harming the environment. What’s more, the team’s research shows that butt-free streets reduce the littering of other
items too, by up to 75%, so tackling cigarette butts is a win-win for councils, wildlife and the public.
Dr Dannielle Green, Associate Professor at Anglia Ruskin University who led the first study to show the damage that cigarette butts can cause to plants in 2019 said:
Cigarette butts are single-use plastics and are hazardous waste. They release microplastics and leach out toxic chemicals that can be lethal to marine and freshwater plants and animals. Even if they don’t cause death, cigarette butts can reduce the
ability of certain aquatic organisms to reproduce or feed. On land they can contaminate crops with nicotine and reduce the growth of important plants such as grass and clover. Despite being the most common litter item for decades, cigarette butts
have flown under the radar in the fight against plastic pollution and it is time to change this.”
