At the same time as a ban on plastic straws, Spain introduced a law on Friday that obliges cigarette manufacturers to pay for cleaning up discarded butts. According to nature managers, this will tackle one of the biggest polluters. It will probably cost manufacturers hundreds of millions a year.
The new law is part of a much larger package of measures that are part of the European plans to drastically reduce the use of plastic. In addition to plastic straws, cotton swabs and disposable cutlery are also banned.
But the 22 percent of Spaniards who smoke will especially notice the tobacco measures. It is not yet known what the costs of cleaning up the millions of filters in nature will be. A Catalan study previously showed that this could be about 12 to 21 euros per inhabitant. That would amount to hundreds of millions of euros, which are expected to be passed on in the price per pack of cigarettes.
In addition, manufacturers are obliged to ‘educate’ smokers better. They need to teach their customers how to properly dispose of their cigarettes.
Ten years
Nature organizations are happy with the measure. Cigarette butts are one of the biggest polluters and very difficult to clean up. It takes about ten years for the remains to decompose. In addition, there are all kinds of toxic substances in the discarded filters. Cigarette butts also cause a lot of mess in the water: according to the organization’s estimate Ocean Conservancy about five billion float in the sea. Not infrequently they end up in the stomachs of fish, who think they are food.
The strict environmental legislation does not come out of the blue. Spain has recently taken the lead when it comes to progressive developments. Last year, for example, the country decided to be the first European country to grant five days of menstrual leave to women if they need it. There has even been a ministry of equality for some time.
The country is also moving further and further in the field of smoking. Although more people in Spain smoke than the average in Europe, for example, there are already about 500 beaches that are smoke-free. Smoking is no longer allowed on any beach in Barcelona.
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