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Falmouth to vote on beach smoking ban 

Local beach officials are tired of all the butts in the sand.

Voters at Monday's annual town meeting could make all of Falmouth's 11 town beaches smoke-free if they approve a recommendation from Beach Supt. Donald Hoffer and the Falmouth Beach Committee. If it passes, Falmouth will become the third Cape town, in addition to Barnstable and Yarmouth, to ban tobacco products from all public beaches, Hoffer said.

"Cigarette butts and filters end up in the sand, thousands of them every year, and they're not biodegradable," Hoffer said. "We'd be ridding the beaches of noxious debris."

The warrant article -- one of 32 voters will decide on Monday -- stemmed from a unanimous 5-0 vote from the beach committee and simply states "the use of smoking materials on the public beaches of Falmouth is prohibited."

Lifeguards will be responsible for enforcing the proposed rule, although Hoffer said he hopes beachgoers will eventually learn to police themselves so lifeguards can focus on keeping people safe from drowning.

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