Credit: Littering.lu
Luxembourg's Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity has announced the launch of the national campaign against cigarette butt littering.
Faced with the negative effects of cigarette butts on the environment, the Environment Agency, the Water Management Authority and Valorlux ASBL launched this national awareness and action campaign against cigarette butts littering on Wednesday 2 October 2024.
Under the slogan "MERCI!" (Thank you!), this initiative aims to raise awareness among the public, communities and businesses to fight together against this form of littering.
The authorities noted that more than 100 million cigarette butts can be found currently on Luxembourg soil. Around eleven billion cigarette butts are thrown on the ground every day around the world and 40% of these end up in the oceans.
Cigarette filters are made of plastic and break down into microplastics once in nature. These microparticles - practically invisible to the naked eye - are thus spread into the environment and can partly end up in the food chain, the authorities added.
According to an ILRES study from August 2023, five out of ten smokers have already thrown cigarette butts on the ground or in sewers. The new anti-littering campaign aims to raise awareness among smokers about the impact of such action, which is often considered harmless but is punishable by law in Luxembourg with a fine of €145.
The campaign slogan is aimed at encouraging smokers to use an ashtray. As such, pocket ashtrays will be distributed free of charge during public actions on the streets.
The campaign is the result of a collaboration between Valorlux ASBL, the Environment Agency and the Water Management Authority. Since this year, Valorlux has had to finance awareness campaigns against fly-tipping to meet the legal obligations of its members who produce tobacco products with filters.
Additional information is available on the campaign website www.littering.lu.
