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Facts and Figures
• 86% of streets in Wales suffer from smoking related litter. (KWT LEAMS Surveys –2005-2006) • Many people wrongly believe that cigarette filters are biodegradable and made of cotton. However they are made of cellulose acetate, which takes 12 years to biodegrade (www.highpeak.gov.uk). • KWT estimate that 85% of littered items are smoking related litter, with most of this being cigarette ends. (KWT Smoking Related Litter Position Paper) • Cigarette ends are harmful to the environment, and cause health problems to children and animals that consume them. (KWT Smoking Related Litter Position Paper) • Smoking related litter is the most commonly littered substance in Wales, with cigarette ends easily the most common form of litter. (Chapman S, 2006. Butt Clean Up Campaigns: Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing? Editorial. Tobacco Control 2006 (15), 273.) • Young people are still taking up smoking in similar numbers as they did in the past, which suggests that smoking related litter will remain a problem in the future (Action on smoking and Health, 2006. Factsheet No 1. Smoking Statistics. London: Action on smoking and health) • In 2005, 24% of smoking employees were provided with a designated smoking area indoors. However, just 65% of these workers that smoke outdoors claim to have adequate provision of receptacles for smoking related litter. (EnCams, 2005. Smoking-Related Litter Survey with working adults. Wigan: EnCams) • Cigarette filters leach out chemical contaminants – nicotine and pyrene start to leach within one hour of exposure to the environment. (Butt Littering Trust, 2003. Butt Littering Interventions Situation Report: Work in Progress. Sydney: Butt Littering Trust) • In the UK cigarette related refuse has risen by 19% in the last three years, making it more of a problem than fast food, drinks cans and chewing gum (www.highpeak.gov.uk). |
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