The scene is repeated everywhere: in the streets, along sidewalks, in public parks. All the wrong places, where cigarette butts create veritable carpets of waste, which are very harmful, primarily because of the chemicals they contain and the harmful emissions they generate.
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What does a cigarette butt contain?
The butts of cigarettes They are among the most polluting objects in existence. A source of poisons that end up in environmentally sensitive places (sidewalks, gardens, parks, beaches, and even the sea) and even in our lungs. If not disposed of properly, cigarette butts are broken down by factors such as sunlight and humidity, releasing microplastics, heavy metals, and many other chemicals. Each cigarette butt filter, which is rightly classified as "special waste," is composed of approximately 15.00 microplastic fibers. And it's estimated that cigarette butts release, every year, 0,3 million tons of fiber plastic, equal to the harmful emissions of all the washing machines in the world. In Italy, 65 percent of smokers don't dispose of cigarettes properly, and 14 billion cigarette butts end up in the environment, causing a deadly pollution effect. Cigarette butts are one of the most widespread pollutants in the world, considering that there are 1,5 billion smokers and something like 4,5 trillion of cigarette butts are littered in the environment every year.
The poisonous emissions from cigarette butts
Cigarette butts that end up in the wrong places, from sidewalks to beaches, and even in green areas of cities, continue to emit nicotine, up to 14 percent of the total content in the cigarette. (research from the National Institute of Standards and Technology), and the filter of a cigarette butt, which looks like cotton but is actually cellulose acetate, traps and then partially releases over 4 chemicals, many of which are decidedly toxic. For example:
- Nicotine
- Assnico
- Lead
- Cadmium
- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)
These substances are slowly released into the environment, polluting soil and water. A single cigarette butt can contaminate up to 40-60 liters of water sweet.
Cigarette butts at sea and on beaches
The cigarette butts are among the most common types of waste on beaches and easily end up in waterways, reaching the sea. And here they can be ingested by fish, birds and turtles, causing suffocation or intoxication. Furthermore, the release of microplastics contributes to the phenomenon of plasticization of the oceans.
Degradation times
A cigarette butt takes up to 10-15 years to degrade completely, and during this very long time, it continues to release toxins, microplastics and the various poisonous substances it contains.
Where cigarette butts are thrown away
Starting from any ashtray, the correct destination for cigarette butts, considered "special waste," is the unsorted waste container. Cigarette butts should be collected and disposed of in the gray bin (or the container dedicated to residual waste, according to your municipality's separate waste collection system).
The things you absolutely should not do, apart from throwing cigarette butts on the ground, are:
- Don't flush them down the toilet: they pollute the water.
- Don't throw them in the organic or wet waste: they are not biodegradable.
- Don't throw them in the plastic: They only partially contain plastic and are therefore contaminated.
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