Cigarette butts might seem small, but they can have a big impact and can be quite costly for businesses as well as the environment. Littered cigarette butts create unsightly litter and they can contaminate the ecosystem when washed off streets and sidewalks, through the storm system and into our local waterways.
Did you know?
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Cigarettes are the most littered item in America and the world (4.3 trillion butts per year).
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Almost 1 in 3 cigarette butts end up as litter.
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Cigarette butts seep toxic chemicals such as cadmium, lead and arsenic into our marine environment within an hour of contact with water. (The toxins released from one cigarette butt left in a gallon of water for one day will kill about 80 percent of aquatic life added to that water.)
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Cigarette filters are made of plastic, not paper and cotton, which means that cigarette litter lingers in our environment for as much as 25 years.
What you can do … If you smoke, be prepared. Make sure to discard your cigarette butt properly, such as in a "butt can" or personal ashtray.
What we’re doing … The City of Tacoma is working with local businesses to provide more "butt cans" and to better inform smokers about the impact of cigarette butt litter.
About the cigarette butt litter pilot prevention program
The City of Tacoma is piloting a cigarette litter prevent program, titled "CAN IT: Keep your butts out of the bay," in a portion of downtown Tacoma from September through November 2007. The City will install approximately 20 new "butt cans" in strategic locations and will also work with businesses to add cigarette receptacles to areas where there employees or customers routinely smoke. The City will also be distributing educational materials and personal ashtrays to help promote proper disposal of used cigarette butts and keep the related toxins out of the local waterways. Sediment traps in the stormwater system will be tested to see if the extra effort reduces levels of certain contaminants associated with cigarette butt litter.
Participating businesses
Thank you to the following businesses within our pilot study area who are partnering with the City to keep our streets, sidewalks and local waterways free from cigarette butt litter!
Aroma Cafe
Bank of Tacoma
Brodsky's Uniforms and Equipment
Budget Car Rental
The Camera Shop
Commerce Teriyaki
Cosmic Coffee
Curves
Davita
Grocery & Deli (9th & Commerce)
Hal of a Sub
The Headliners
Heritage Bank
India Mahal
Key Bank
La Costa
Master Builders Association
The Matador
Meconi's Pub & Eatery
Mini Mart & Deli
Minuteman Press
Neil Walter Properties
Pacific Northwest Collections
Paddy Coyne's Irish Pub
The Pita Pit
ReMax Premier Executives
Salon Metro & Day Spa
The Vault Catering
Venture Bank
Watermark Gifts
Wells Fargo Plaza (Unico Properties)
For more information, contact Alicia Lawver at (253) 591-5414.