Cigarette butts create 5,000 tonnes of waste in Austria each year

About 5,000 tonnes of waste from cigarette butts are produced in Austria each year, ORF reports. The discarded filters can release toxic substances into the environment, and a ban on throwing cigarette butts on children’s playgrounds has been in force since August, though enforcement is difficult.

It takes 10 to 15 years for a cigarette butt to decompose completely in nature. During that time, pollutants can leach into the environment. Hans-Peter Hutter, an environmental medicine specialist at the Medical University of Vienna, says the filters are made of xylose acetate, which breaks down into microplastics, and contain numerous toxic and cancer-causing substances.

Hutter says the ban on discarding cigarette butts at playgrounds is necessary, given how widely accepted littering remains. Checks are carried out only at random, including by Klagenfurt’s municipal regulatory office. Wilfried Kammerer of the Klagenfurt municipal administration said signs drawing attention to the ban are planned for playgrounds.

Hutter said smoking is Austria’s leading preventable cause of death. People who continue to smoke should dispose of their cigarette butts properly, he said, describing the resulting pollution as a preventable source of harm.