On the beaches of Biscarrosse (Landes), Lacanau (Gironde) or Porge (Gironde), tobacco manufacturers have been experimenting for a few days with new ways of collecting butts. "We are going to do a field study to see what works best, we urgently need to deal with this societal problem", comments Cyril Lalo, spokesperson for the "Mégot Mission" and director of public affairs for the Seita France, owner of the Gitanes and Gauloises brands among others.
In France, one in three cigarettes ends up on the ground, which represents 21 billion cibiches per year. A mountain of rubbish, a major source of pollution: a cigarette butt contains thousands of chemicals, one is enough to soil up to 500 liters of water.
"These are the wastes that we find the most," testifies Antidia Citores, from the Surfrider association, which organizes cleaning operations on beaches and other swimming places. Surgical masks have still not dethroned them, far from it! "
Should we carry an ashtray to smokers?
The Mission Mégot launched similar experiments in Lyon (Rhône) last month in public transport. In September, other pilot initiatives will start at Saint-Lazare station in Paris. “On each site, we test a gradation of installations,” explains Cyril Lalo.
Are smokers more civic when we provide them with an ashtray? When we invent a “nudge”, from the English “boost”, or a funny visual to encourage them without making them feel guilty to do the right thing? Or should the officers come, garbage bags in hand, to raise awareness?
Cigarette manufacturers have no real choice but to fight against these bad actions, punishable by a fine of 68 euros. In January, they will have to engage in a whole new approach of “extended producer responsibility” (EPR), that is to say put their hands in their pockets. On the polluter pays principle, they will have to finance communication and cleaning campaigns or even equip the most frequented places, such as train stations or the squares of office buildings in business districts.
Like many associative actors working for the protection of the environment, Antidia Citores remains to be convinced: “I was on the beach of Porge, where a silo was installed intended to collect only cigarette ends, in the catering area. Okay, but I haven't seen a remarkable effect, she says. If it is only to point the finger at smokers, it is a process of making consumers feel guilty, not the responsibility of the producers. What will they do upstream to design filters less stuffed with chemicals, downstream to recycle these collected butts? "
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Some players like Green Minded already collect and recycle this highly polluting waste in cities such as Lille (North) or Saint-Tropez (Var). Alice Comble, the creator of this Marseille company, only hopes that “these studies are not only intended to save time, in order to avoid having to launch EPR as of January 1 as planned. In short, this study should not be a smokescreen.
Think of the pocket ashtray
The normal journey of a cigarette is from the packet to the mouth, from the mouth to the ashtray or the trash. But one in two smokers admit to sometimes throwing their old filters on the floor. In town, it is usually enough to walk 100 m to find a trash can. This is not always the case in nature, on the beach or on a walk. In this case, the pocket ashtray is practical and inexpensive. They can be found in tobacco shops for only a few euros.