Butt of the directive: Spain smokes out tobacco manufacturers to pay for cigarette pollution
10 Jan 2023 --- Spain is cracking down on discarded cigarette butts by placing a clean-up cost on tobacco companies under Spanish environmental regulations, in line with the EU’s Single Use Plastic Directive (SUPD).
While the amount tobacco companies will be required to pay is yet to be determined, the regulations require manufacturers to educate and urge smokers to dispose of the butts responsibly.
Cornel Radu-Loghin, secretary general of the European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention (ENSP), explains how the SUPD directly relates to tobacco control.
“There are now marking and labeling requirements as well as awareness-raising measures. The directive also imposes the implementation of extended producer responsibility schemes by 5 January 2023, under which the producers of these products would have to cover at least the costs of the awareness-raising measures as well as the cost of clean-up, collection, transport and treatment of waste,” he says.
Tobacco microplastics tackled
The European Commission reports that Spain accounts for 9% of the EU’s total greenhouse gas emissions (as per April 2021 report).
WHO states that tobacco production has environmental impacts ranging from crop-production to post-consumer waste.In its efforts to reduce emissions, Spain passed a law banning several types of single-use plastics, such as cutlery and straws. Cigarette butts are targeted in the directive for the non-biodegradable plastic composition of the filters, which can generate microplastics.
According to Spain-based Rezero’s report titled “Cigarette Waste. Impacts and opportunities from an environmental, economic and regulatory perspective,” in Catalan municipalities, the annual costs of road cleaning of cigarettes can range between €12 and €21 (US$13-23) per person, being higher in coastal municipalities.
“In Catalonia, cigarette waste generates more than 2,700 metric tons of waste per year, and it is estimated that globally 70% of cigarettes smoked end up on the ground or in natural spaces,” Rezero states.
“These represent between 30% to 40% of the rubbish scattered in municipalities (in unitary terms) and are the most abundant waste on the beaches of the western Mediterranean region (25.33% of the total marine litter collected).”
Once cigarettes end up in the environment, they can cause serious environmental impacts, underlines Rezero.
“The large number of toxic compounds resulting from the combustion of tobacco that accumulates in the filters which, over time, end up being transferred to the soil or water, polluting them and being a threat to different types of ecosystems and living organisms.”
Additionally, the World Health Organisation (WHO), estimates that approximately 4.5 trillion cigarette butts are thrown away annually.
“The tobacco industry is ultimately responsible for the environmental destruction caused by the production of cigarettes. An estimated 1.5 billion hectares of mainly tropical forest have been lost since the 1970s due to tobacco. It also has a deep impact on soil quality and water resources,” WHO states.
“Tobacco products and production are highly damaging to people and the planet. The tobacco industry should also be held to account for tobacco waste and damages following production.”
Edited by Radhika Sikaria
