Transforming cigarette butts into plant soil and eco-sustainable fuel, turning one of the most polluting wastes into a valuable, eco-friendly, and cost-effective resource. A total of one million tons of cigarette butts are produced each year, classified as highly toxic and polluting waste due to the chemicals trapped in the cotton filters. Therefore, a "circular" management of cigarette butts is essential, as they pose a problem for governments and citizens in terms of quantity and disposal.
CIGARETTE BUTTS FOCUS PROJECT
In Capannori, 5 km from Lucca, they looked for an alternative, non-wasteful and green way to give cigarette butts a second life: that of turning them into eco-friendly fuel using algae, or obtaining an inert substrate to be used for growing ornamental plants and shrubs.
These will be the innovative uses of cigarette butts thrown away by the citizens of Capannori thanks to an experimental project, unique in its kind in Italy: thethe Focus project (Filter of Cigarettes reUse Safely), started in January 2020, with a duration of three years. Promoted by the Enrico Avanzi Interdepartmental Center of the University of Pisa, Focus is a project developed in collaboration with the Municipality of Capannori, the Institute of Terrestrial Ecosystems of the National Research Council (CNR), the Department of Agricultural, Food and Agro-Environmental Sciences, and Ascit, the company that manages urban hygiene services in the Lucca area.
This idea for recycling cigarette butts is highly innovative and experimental. The project coordinator describes it in detail: Lorenzo Guglielminetti, which explains: "The plan is to reuse cigarette residues as an inert substrate for growing ornamental plants using hydroponic techniques. Initially, the cigarette residues will be separated from their biodegradable components (paper and tobacco) and then appropriately treated to make them chemically and physically suitable for the proposed use. Once the appropriate inert substrate has been obtained, germination trials will be conducted on several plant species to identify those best suited to this specific cultivation system. Various microalgae species will then be tested on the residues produced by the process, identifying the species capable of breaking down all the residues and producing biomass that can then be used to produce biofuels, thus closing a virtuous cycle.
TO KNOW MORE: From garbage cans to car fuel tanks: a Gela plant transforms waste into biofuel.
BIOFUEL FROM CIGARETTE BUTTS
Cigarettes that become the basis for growing plants and flowers and even fuel, thanks to algaeThis, in short, is the Focus project, which, precisely because of its innovative nature, received co-financing from the Cassa di Risparmio di Lucca Foundation, in addition to the resources of the "Enrico Avanzi" Interdepartmental Center in Pisa and the Municipality of Capannori.
A circular approach to the disposal of cigarette butts also means raising awareness among citizens about this type of waste, in a step-by-step process promoted by the Capannori administration and the mayor, Luca Menesini, who also decided to join the national campaign “No cigarette butts on the ground” launched by the broadcast Strip the news.
"The citizens of Capannori have always demonstrated a particularly sensitive attitude to environmental issues," explains the mayor. "For this reason, in addition to this project to implement a special cigarette butt collection facility, we have decided to strictly enforce national regulations, which impose fines of up to €300 on those who throw cigarettes on the ground." To encourage separate cigarette butt collection and ensure the disposal of waste for processing, the administration has decided to place special containers in strategic locations throughout the area.
The Focus project is a candidate for the 2020 Non Sprecare Award. To nominate your projects, follow the instructions provided. here.
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