Cigarette Smoke: Air Pollution's Deadly Impact

Cigarette smoke is a major contributor to air pollution, with a single cigarette containing over 4,000 chemicals and 60 known carcinogens. It is estimated that tobacco production costs the world 8 million lives, 600 million trees, 200,000 hectares of land, 22 billion tonnes of water, and 84 million tonnes of CO2 annually. Cigarette smoke produces ten times more air pollution than diesel car exhaust, with fine particles being the most dangerous element of air pollution for human health. These fine particles can enter the bloodstream, causing premature death in people with heart and lung disease.

Cigarette butts are the most commonly littered item worldwide, with 4.5 trillion polluting our oceans, rivers, sidewalks, parks, soil, and beaches every year. They are made from plasticised cellulose acetate, a type of plastic that takes up to 14 years to break down into microplastics, which then remain in the environment indefinitely.

In addition to the environmental impact of cigarette butts, the production and consumption of tobacco also contribute to air pollution. Tobacco growth is water-intensive, requiring 22 billion tonnes of water per year, and often involves tree removal, leading to soil degradation and decreased biodiversity. The curing process requires the burning of 11.4 million metric tonnes of wood per year, contributing to deforestation and the release of greenhouse gases.

The manufacturing process is energy-intensive, releasing greenhouse gases, particle pollution, and emissions equivalent to those of 3 million transatlantic flights. The commercial transport of tobacco products relies on fossil fuels, further contributing to air pollution through the release of fine particles.

Overall, the tobacco industry has a significant impact on air pollution, and efforts to reduce this pollution include implementing stronger local regulations, financial penalties, and encouraging smokers to quit.

Cigarette smoke is more polluting than diesel emissions

Cigarette smoke is a major source of air pollution and is significantly more polluting than diesel emissions. A

Tobacco production's environmental impact

Tobacco production has a significant environmental impact, from its early stages of growth and curing to its post-consumption waste.

Tobacco growing and curing

Tobacco growing and curing have serious environmental consequences, including biodiversity loss, soil erosion and degradation, water pollution, and increased atmospheric carbon dioxide. Tobacco growing usually involves the substantial use of chemicals, including pesticides, fertilisers, and growth regulators, which may affect drinking water sources. Tobacco crops also deplete soil nutrients, taking up more nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium than other major crops.

Tobacco farming is responsible for 5% of global deforestation, with an estimated 600 million trees being chopped down by the tobacco industry every year. The land used for tobacco growing has increased in several low- and middle-income countries, and multinational tobacco companies have encouraged this expansion through intensive lobbying and investments.

Manufacturing and distribution

Tobacco manufacturing produces a significant amount of solid waste, non-recyclable nicotine-containing waste, and chemical waste. The health impacts of environmental tobacco smoke exposure include lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, and pulmonary disease. The manufacturing and disposal of cigarette lighters also have environmental impacts, as they contain plastic, metal, and butane.

Post-consumption waste

Cigarette butts are the most commonly discarded piece of waste globally and frequently end up as litter on beaches and in waterways. Cigarette filters are made from cellulose acetate, a plastic that does not readily biodegrade, and trillions of filter-tipped butts are discarded annually. Hazardous substances, such as arsenic, lead, nicotine, and ethyl phenol, are found in cigarette butts and leach into aquatic environments and soil.

The tobacco industry also generates a substantial amount of packaging waste, with about 300 billion cigarette packages produced annually, assuming 20 cigarettes per pack. This results in at least 1,800,000 tonnes of solid waste, composed of paper, ink, cellophane, foil, and glue.

Carbon dioxide emissions

Tobacco smoking leads to the emission of 2,600,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide and about 5,200,000 tonnes of methane annually. Tobacco growing and curing cause significant deforestation, contributing to the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Policy recommendations

To address the environmental impacts of tobacco production, the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) has made several recommendations. These include identifying and monitoring health effects related to tobacco growing, developing strategies to protect tobacco farmers and workers from unfair and unsafe practices, and strengthening the regulation of tobacco agriculture to prevent deforestation and land degradation. Extended producer responsibility regulations should be implemented on the tobacco industry to reduce and mitigate manufacturing and post-consumption waste.

Cigarette butts are the most commonly littered item

Cigarette butts are the most littered item on the planet, making up 25% to 40% of all litter globally, according to the World Health Organization. They are consistently found to be the most common item collected in international coastal and urban cleanups, making up 30% to 40% of all items.

Cigarette butts are commonly littered for three main reasons. Firstly, they can take many years to break down. The plastic filters, made from cellulose acetate, only degrade under severe biological circumstances, such as when they collect in sewage. Even in optimal conditions, it can take at least nine months for a cigarette butt to decompose. Secondly, discarding cigarette butts on the ground or out of a car is a common method of disposal, with 75% of smokers reporting doing it. Finally, smoking rates remain high, with nearly 16% of adults and 5.4% of youth smoking cigarettes.

The consequences of cigarette butt littering are significant. Cigarette butts leach toxic chemicals, such as arsenic and lead, into the environment, leading to land, water, and air pollution. The small size and low economic value of cigarette butts also contribute to the inefficiencies of waste collection and management systems.

To address this issue, innovative cigarette design, extended producer responsibility, and stringent waste collection mechanisms have been proposed. Additionally, gentle marketing strategies and non-confrontational behavioural nudges could help reduce the prevalence of cigarette butt littering.

E-cigarette waste is a growing problem

The disposal of e-cigarettes is a complex issue. They are considered e-waste, yet they also contain residual nicotine, which further complicates the disposal process as they may also qualify as biohazard waste. There are currently no standardised ways to recycle e-cigarettes, and manufacturers often do not provide clear instructions on how to dispose of them. This has resulted in people throwing them away in the regular trash or, even worse, littering. According to a 2020 study, more than half of young e-cigarette users reported disposing of used e-cigarette pods or empty disposables in the trash, 17% put them in a regular recycling bin, and 10% threw them on the ground.

The improper disposal of e-cigarettes can have serious environmental consequences. E-cigarettes contain toxic chemicals, heavy metals, and lithium-ion batteries, which, if littered or improperly discarded, can leach into the local environment and affect both humans and other organisms. They also pose choking hazards for small children and may be inadvertently eaten by birds and other animals.

To address this growing problem, there is a need for standardised processes for the disposal of e-cigarette devices, refills, and e-liquids. Federal, state, and local governments should set clear standards for environmentally responsible e-cigarette waste disposal and hold manufacturers accountable for adhering to them. Manufacturers should also be required to establish recycling programs and provide clear guidelines for consumers on how to properly dispose of their products.

Tobacco farming's contribution to deforestation

Tobacco farming is a major contributor to deforestation, with the industry costing the world 600 million trees every year.

The tobacco industry's carbon footprint from production, processing, and transportation is equivalent to one-fifth of the CO2 produced by the commercial airline industry each year. This is further exacerbated by the need for wood fuel to cure tobacco leaves.

In the Miombo ecoregion of southeast-central Africa, which holds 90% of all land under tobacco crops on the African continent, tobacco-attributable deforestation accounts for up to half of the losses of woodland and forest there.

In Tanzania, the leading tobacco-growing country in the Miombo ecoregion, tobacco farming has been found to be up to ten times more aggressive in causing deforestation than all other factors combined.

British American Tobacco (BAT), the main player in the tobacco farming scene in the hills, has received national recognition for its contribution to tree plantation, despite its role in deforestation.

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