How does a cigarette thrown on the ground affect the environment?

According to the World Health Organization,The number of smokers in the world has already reached the billion mark, and many of them throw cigarette butts past the rubbish bin. However, many do not even realize that the mountains of cigarette butts are the very plastic garbage that literally destroys our planet. Researchers from the University of England Ruskin clearly showed how strongly one cigarette thrown on the ground hinders plant growth.

Cigarette butts really areplastic trash. The fact is that cigarette filters, which supposedly reduce the amount of tar and nicotine in the inhaled smoke, are made of plastic called cellulose acetate. According to the calculations of scientists, for the complete decomposition of this material requires from one and a half to ten years. During this time, its chemical composition manages to get into the soil and harm the plants.

Harm cigarettes

To prove it, scientists conducted a simpleexperiment. They threw a cigarette cigarette butt into a pot in which a white clover grew - a plant that is quite resistant to temperature and humidity and serves as a lawn in almost all parks of the world. In just 21 days in the pot, the butt slowed the growth of clover by 27%, and noticeably shortened its length. Slow growth was also observed in the case of lawn grass called ryegrass.

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According to scientists, there is no difference, I kissa person throws out a cigarette, or a cigarette butt - environmental damage is done anyway. As one of the most common plants in parks, white clover plays a huge role in natural processes. For example, clover enriches the soil, saturates it with nitrogen, and also participates in pollination of plants - bees actively collect nectar from its flowers, and produce high-quality, white honey with a strong aroma.

Clover flowers

Plastic trash in parks

To show the scale of the harm that is being donenature thrown on the ground cigarettes, the researchers went around several parks and counted the number of cigarette butts lying in them. In some areas, they literally found mountains of garbage - on one square meter, sometimes there were more than 100 leftover cigarettes. Researchers concluded that throwing cigarette butts past a garbage can becomes a social problem, and it is time for city residents to explain that cigarette filters decompose for a very long time and cause severe damage to plants.

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Fines for cigarettes

In some countries, for example, in Germany, fora cigarette butt thrown on the ground can get quite a large fine, or even get behind bars. Thus, in Munich and Hamburg, the fine amounts to 55 euros, which is about 4,000 rubles at the current rate. If a person throws a cigarette out of the car, he commits a criminal offense and runs the risk of going to jail - the cigarette butt can cause a fire or a traffic accident. If in the course of an accident, which somehow happened due to a discarded cigarette, people died, it is considered manslaughter.

How many such “bulls” do you see every day?

Similar bills want to take in Russia. For example, in 2017, in the decree “On Fire Fighting Mode”, a clause appeared prohibiting throwing cigarettes and matches from train and car windows. There are reports that in some regions for such violations are fined amounts from 2,000 rubles.

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