http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/category/litter.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://www.kingsbayperiscope.com/stories/051508/kin_cigarettebutts_001.xml.shtml http://tobacco.org/news/265380.html But there is another fire hazard that is not mentioned that can be a major factor in wildfires - cigarette butts. You may have seen an area of burned grass in the medians of our highways and interstates. A cigarette butt tossed out of a car window most likely caused this. It was probably an absent minded thing as many people do not even consider it litter. Here are some facts everyone should know about cigarette butts: Dropped cigarette butts have been the cause of numerous house and apartment fires . . . Cigarette butts contain Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, Formaldehyde, Acetone, and Benzene. The nicotine trapped inside 200 cigarette butts is enough to kill an adult human. These chemicals and compounds get washed out of the filter and into our water when it rains. . . . The Department of the Navy works hard on pollution prevention, health and safety, storm water controls, and other environmental regulations. Please help us protect our Natural Resources and set an example for others to follow. Kings Bay Periscope Thu, 15 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/051408dnmetdalsmokingban.f84b15ae.html http://tobacco.org/news/265261.html Dallas County commissioners voted this morning to ban smoking in the county's new landscaped outdoor plaza. Founders Plaza is now officially added to the list of designated non-smoking areas in hopes of making the area more friendly to visitors and eliminating the eyesore of discarded cigarette butts. Outdoor smoking bans have created controversy in other American cities because there is no scientific evidence that walking by someone who's smoking outside creates a health hazard. The motive in some other cities was to discourage loitering. In Dallas County, it's for different aesthetic reasons: employees are littering the plaza with cigarette butts. Dallas Morning News kkrause@dallasnews.com (KEVIN KRAUSE / The Dallas Morning News) Wed, 14 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.shropshirestar.com/2008/05/10/smoker-in-court-for-dropping-cigarette/ http://tobacco.org/news/265185.html A smoker ended up in court - for dropping a cigarette butt in a Telford street. David Jinks was hauled before magistrates after refusing to pay a £50 penalty for littering. He admitted the offence when he appeared in court yesterday and was hit with an £80 fine and ordered to pay £50 costs and a £15 victim surcharge. Shropshire Star UK Sat, 10 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.news4jax.com/news/16207357/detail.html http://tobacco.org/news/265052.html On Thursday, Channel 4's Jennifer Bauer did what some onlookers only dream of doing -- confronting litter bugs. From a distance, Jacksonville never looked more beautiful, but a glance down shows an ugly truth -- streets and sidewalks littered with cigarette butts. One man was caught on tape throwing a cigarette butt on the ground and lighting up another before tossing that butt too. The man was standing in front of the AT&T building downtown, where there are plenty of places he could properly dispose of his butts; however, he chose to litter. When he tossed the third butt on the ground, Bauer approached him to find out why: . . . To do the right thing when it comes to disposing of cigarette butts, visit CigaretteLitter.org for a free pocket ashtray. WJXT-Channel 4 Thu, 08 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.edmontonsun.com/Comment/Commentary/2008/05/08/5513216-sun.html http://tobacco.org/news/265013.html The trouble with zealots is they almost never think about the consequences of their zeal. And there was no bigger caped crusader than Edmonton Tory MLA Dave Hancock during his brief stint as Ed Stelmach's health minister. Last November, Hancock hailed his Tobacco Reduction Act as an "important part of our government's wellness agenda." The legislation banned smoking from all "public places and workplaces" in the province on January 1. The jury is out on whether Dave's Directive has actually done what it's supposed to - cut the number smokers. Iris Evans's finance department beancounters certainly don't think so. . . . Up to 35% of the small trash collected is now made up of butts, he said. This problem hardly existed when smokers puffed in sealed, ventilated smoking rooms. Now that Liepert is in charge, is it time to lighten up? Let the nicotine addicts back into smoking rooms where they only have themselves to harm. Edmonton Sun Canada Fri, 09 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=200688 http://tobacco.org/news/264800.html ANSWER: While flicking a cigarette might make for quick disposal, it is in fact illegal. Two separate laws address the issue of the disposal of debris on the highway and within city limits. According to Section 321.369 of the Code of Iowa, "A person shall not throw or deposit upon a highway any glass bottle, glass, nails, tacks, wires, cans, trash, garbage, rubbish, litter, offal or any other debris." Dubuque Telegraph-Herald kbrown@wcinet.com (TH staff) Tue, 06 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.news1130.com/news/local/article.jsp?content=20080501_085152_8468 http://tobacco.org/news/264634.html Vancouver is kicking off its annual spring cleaning campaign today, and there are concerns volunteers will have more work to do this year thanks to the recent smoking ban. According to new numbers from Nicorette, cigarette butts already account for one in five items tossed on the street. News1130 Radio Canada Thu, 01 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.northantset.co.uk/news/3000-cigarette-butts-picked-up.4048452.jp http://tobacco.org/news/264551.html Smokers are being urged to clean up their act following the operation to show the impact the smoking ban has had on the streets and cleansing services in East Northamptonshire. The district council has an annual budget of £855,000 for litter picking and street sweeping which has to cover the whole district, and the environmental costs of dropping butts are as significant as the financial implications. Kettering Evening Telegraph UK Sat, 03 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/05/05022008_Tossed-cigarette-leads-to-standoff.cfm http://tobacco.org/news/264497.html How could a lighted cigarette, tossed out of a car in Orchards on Thursday afternoon, spark a police chase and a standoff with heavily armed SWAT officers? One thing led to another, Washington State Patrol Trooper Stephen Robley said of the 90-minute standoff, with more than a dozen police cars on scene and streets blocked near Heritage High School. . . . Gruendell saw the driver run into the house with a woman and small child who'd been in the front yard. By that time, officers knew the man was Adam L. Staten, 25, who once lived there, and that felony and misdemeanor warrants had previously been issued for his arrest, Robley said. . . . And he got the $1,025 ticket for the alleged littering. "He made it a lot worse for himself," Robley said. "He added on numerous other charges." Vancouver Columbian john.branton@columbian.com (JOHN BRANTON, Columbian Staff Writer) Fri, 02 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/yahoolatestnews/stories/042908dnmetdallas.ab5fa289.html?npc http://tobacco.org/news/264260.html Dallas County commissioners will discuss banning smoking in the county's new landscaped outdoor plaza Tuesday morning to make it more friendly to visitors and eliminate the eyesore of discarded cigarette butts. County officials have proposed adding Founders Plaza to its current list of designated non-smoking areas. Commissioners will vote on it next week. Outdoor smoking bans have created controversy in other American cities because there is no scientific evidence that walking by someone who's smoking outside creates a health hazard. The motive in some other cities was to discourage loitering. In Dallas County, it's for different aesthetic reasons -- employees are littering the plaza with cigarette butts. Dallas Morning News Mon, 28 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2008/apr/28/collier-deputies-target-cigarette-throwing-drivers/ http://tobacco.org/news/264215.html The Collier County Sheriff’s Office will crack down Tuesday on motorists who toss cigarettes onto roadways during “Where There’s Smoke There’s Fire” special enforcement day. The traffic enforcement operation will be conducted countywide and will target motorists who discard any lit substance from a moving vehicle.Discarded cigarettes are the biggest problem, deputies say. “It’s pretty prevalent,” said CCSO Safety and Traffic Enforcement Bureau Sgt. Chris Gonzalez. “People do it all day long.’’ Naples Daily News newsupdates@naplesnews.com Mon, 28 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.globegazette.com/articles/2008/04/28/news/local/doc4815477d3f55b181732310.txt http://tobacco.org/news/264198.html The Charles City Park and Recreation Board is considering making a recommendation to the City Council on banning smoking during organized activities in city parks. Steve Lindaman, park and recreation director, said the the ban would help with "maintain-ing a healthy, clean park atmosphere." Secondhand smoke is one concern, but another is the unsightliness of having numerous cigarette butts on the ground during events such as Party in the Park and the July 4 celebration, he said. Mason City Globe-Gazette mary.pieper@globegazette.com (MARY PIEPER, mary.pieper) Mon, 28 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.winonadailynews.com/articles/2008/04/25/news/01butts25.txt http://tobacco.org/news/264150.html Bryce Fogelson doesn't mind smokers, but he hates what they leave behind. Fogelson finds cigarette butts littered everywhere on the Winona State University campus -- in the cracks of sidewalks, in the mulch of rock gardens and flicked haphazardly near the hundred or so ashtray receptacles outside the entrance of nearly every campus building. . . . The full-time WSU senior and part-time campus maintenance worker -- a job funded by taxpayers -- sucks up the littered butts with a vacuum reverse blower. But after three years on cigarette patrol, he's seen enough. Fogelson collected thousands of stray cigarette butts littering the campus over the past month and put the heaping pile on display for his fellow students Thursday in WSU's Kryzsko Commons. All brands -- the camel and cowboy included -- were well-represented. Winona Daily News amber.dulek@lee.net (Amber Dulek * Winona Daily News) Fri, 25 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://kaaltv.com/article/stories/S424941.shtml?cat=10219 http://tobacco.org/news/264148.html A student from Winona State University is making a statement by taking cigarette butts indoors. More than 2,000 cigarette butts are now on display at Winona State University. This after a part-time maintenance worker and a student at Winona State became frustrated at having to cleaning up all the cigarette butts around campus. "I just want to show people that it isn't alright to litter regardless of how big or small the thing that you're throwing on the ground," says Bryce Fogelson. KAAL-TV Channel 6 Sun, 27 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.theirishworld.com/article.asp?SubSection_Id=2&Article_Id=5343 http://tobacco.org/news/263887.html Smokers who flick away their buts on pavements outside pubs are the focus of a new crackdown in the city. Other people who will be hit by new by-laws from Dublin City Council are those who throw away packaging from take-away food. Cigarette butts piling up on pavements have become a real eyesore since Ireland's smoking ban came in, in 2004, now making up 56% of a all street rubbish. Assistant City Manager Matt Twomey said: "Our experience from both our street-cleaning operations and from litter surveys is that takeaway premises are very high generators of litter. Irish World Ireland Tue, 22 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT