Today I’m angry.
During my 10-minute drive to work this morning, I watched no less than three individuals flick their still-smoking cigarette butts out of their car windows – separately, two men and one woman who carried out their criminal acts with the indifference of a toad gulping a fly. I got the attention of one man by honking my truck horn, waving my index finger back and forth to shame him for his irksome littering. He waved another finger back at me.
Years ago, waiting with my father in line at his bank for an outside teller, I observed a lady discard a cigarette butt out of the window of her vehicle. This time, I jumped out of the passenger seat in my Dad’s car, ran over to the lit butt, picked it up, and then knocked politely on the lady’s window. Amazingly, she rolled down the window and asked, “Yes, may I help you?” I answered righteously, brandishing the foul, smoking butt: “I believe you dropped this.” “Yes, I did. Thank you,” she responded sheepishly and took back her litter. Understandably, my father scolded me for such impulsive, even dangerous, behavior – no matter my principles and the other person’s insensitivities.
According to www.treehugger.com and other websites, the world discards over 4.5 trillion cigarette butts annually, creating over 500,000 tons of pollution each year for our streets, beaches, highways, and streams. If my calculations are correct, the line of butts laid end-to-end for that many cigarettes would circle the Earth more than 2000 times! Cigarette butts are made of synthetic polymer cellulose acetate, the same kind of plastic found in soda bottles and plastic bags. They are NOT made from cotton, wool, or paper. Though they will eventually degrade, at least partially, the process of decomposition may take a dozen years, depending on the environment. Further, the nicotine contained in 200 leftover cigarette butts is enough to kill a full-sized human being, so imagine the cumulative effects on wildlife! And, within an hour of contact with water, these soggy butts can begin to leach nasty carcinogenic chemicals such as cyanide, formaldehyde, and arsenic into the environment. Finally, let’s not forget about the incontrovertible link between burning butts and costly forest fires – 190 fires in the State of Virginia in 2001, for example. Cigarette butt pollution is queen among the loathsome personal habits of humankind.
Hey, Here’s an idea . . . What if we made cigarette butt pollution a capital crime?
OK. Probably too severe. What if we make cigarette butt pollution punishable by a mandatory 10-year prison term?
OK. Still probably too severe. What if we educate and enforce existing laws? Littering, including butt pollution, is already illegal in the State of Virginia. Section 33.3-346 of the Code of Virginia makes littering or dumping trash a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail and/or a fine up to $2500! Further, Section 10.1-1143 of the State’s Forestry Code makes it unlawful to throw “any lighted smoking material” from a vehicle: a Class 2 misdemeanor violation punishable by up to 6 months in jail and/or a fine up to $1000. So those three drivers I encountered this morning? Criminals. No exaggeration.
But penalties are deterrents only when they’re enforced. Any cursory look around public parking lots – or a 10-minute drive to work – will show that littering is still a prevalent habit here in the Commonwealth. Some people just don’t seem to care.
How do we fix this insidious problem? Education, for one. “Keep America Beautiful,” the “Virginia Council for Litter Prevention and Recycling,” and the “Adopt-a-Highway” volunteer program are three examples worthy of our continued support. Another educational avenue is to encourage awareness campaigns in our schools and universities, in our houses of worship, and in our media outlets. Enforcement, for another. Let’s cheer our state representatives and law enforcement officials for their stances thus far against cigarette butt pollution, but now let’s push for police vigilance and the full exercise of fines and imprisonment where applicable. At times, enforcement IS education.
Remember: polluters are misdemeanor criminals and need to be treated as such. They need to learn to put their butts where they belong: in the trash. It’s a simple matter of responsible choice. No buts about it.
H. Bruce Rinker, Ph.D.Science Department Chairman
Good article, but only because it makes the public aware of:
(1) the fact that this act is a crime (very few people realize this);
(2) the fact that cigarette butts are environmentally hazardous; and,
(3) the fact that the criminalization of this act reveals to us that we live in an authoritarian police state.
Anyone who would put in jail a fellow man for discarding a cigarette butt is a power-hungry, control-obsessed, authoritarian. For God’s sake, people, this could be your son, your daughter, your mother, your father, your friend. He or she, not even conceiving of the possibility that this would be considered a crime, discards a cigarette butt and lands in jail for a year? That is what you want? “Sorry, mom, but you should never have dropped that butt. Sure, you’re 83 and you started back before anyone knew anything about nicotine addiction. Sure, you can’t help it. Sure, our government permits this murderous business so it can collect ungodly amounts of excise taxes. But mom, you can’t drop that butt on the ground.”
We have to stop criminalizing everything. Stop now. We are all criminals now. Speeding is a crime in Virginia (just try driving 55 mph on I-95 South when traffic is flowing 80 mph–you go 75 to try to stay safe and you have committed a crime). Underage possession of alcohol is a crime–a crime to have a beer at 20 years old. Worse yet, we have carved out a new class of lesser citizens–the 18-21 year old. They can be convicted of a DUI with only .02 BAC. Over 21s, who supposedly are mature and know better, don’t get the DUI until .08 BAC. But heh, we have to make all our children criminals now. Throw out a cigarette butt. Cross a double yellow line while passing a double parked car. Turn without a turn signal. Crimes.
Time to stop the police state, people. Sure, let’s stop the littering, but let’s make clear to our people the effects of littering, especially littering cigarette butts. I realize that if we don’t criminalize all of this, our State will lose a large portion of its revenue and its power to control our lives. But my view is that this is a GOOD thing.
Great article Bruce, and Good story Jim,
There should be mandatory GI Party classes for all Roanokers who don’t know how to perform one. But I guess we can hold those classes right after the ‘How to Merge in Traffic’ classes needed here pretty badly too.
As a young US Marine we were often tasked with, “police call.” I cannot tell you the amount of times that I was forced to walk the parade deck, or fields, and common areas and pick up cigarette butts. Then ordered to place them in my pockets until a trash can became available. I was so happy to hear, “Smokers prepare for police call, everyone else can turn to.” Maybe those violators would look good in a day glow vest carrying an orange trash bag with a friendly neighborhood deputy following them.
Well I am a quilty party, I have on occasions done the same thing, not thinking it was as dangerous as some of the other things people actually throw away, such as toxic things being dumped into our waters, and the whopping fine of only $25,000.00, which to multi million dollar companies is pocket change. I now know the ashtray is there for a reason and vow to remember that. Thank you Bruce for another wonderful article, which more should pay attention to.
As an ex smoker myself I am ashamed to admit that when I did smoke, I also was guilty of tossing a butt out of my car window on occasion . I now am in favor of forming a vigilante group that would perform a citizens arrest on these criminals or maybe we could ask Mr. Obama for taxpayer funds to educate these people on the dangers of cigarette smoking. The warning on the pack seems to be working so well that we should keep throwing more money at the problem. This will also help with unemployment because we will have to hire more government bureaucrats to administer this program!
Each morning I walk out my front door and look at the plants starting to grow and then the trees just starting to turn green waiting for the leaves to develop. Then I looked down at the front walk and street and yes there are numerous cigarette butts that have been thrown out car windows and people walking for their health and smoking a cigarette.!.I guess that butt just got to heavy for them to put out and carry to a trash can,
This is the best article of all and sincerely hope every one takes it to heart
Smoking is a horrible addiction and I know this for I am an ex-smoker. I have to say that when I stopped smoking it was one of the best things I ever did for myself, physically and for my living environment. I quit cold turkey and remembering how I suffered under the withdrawal symptoms is enough to make me say “I never WANT to smoke ever again”……..I don’t want to abuse my lungs like that ever again…Great article! I enjoyed reading it.