No butts, you have to bin it!
Two people have been fined £75 for throwing cigarette ends out of their car windows in Carmarthenshire in recent weeks.
The fixed penalty notices were issued by council environmental enforcement officers in two separate incidents in Llanelli and Carmarthen – and on both occasions their excuse was that cigarette ends weren’t litter!
The fines were handed out ahead of a Carmarthenshire County Council campaign against smoking-related litter. Residents are being urged to stub it, bin it and help keep Carmarthenshire clean or they too could be fined £75 - or more if prosecuted through the magistrates court.
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire. In fact, 83 per cent of the county’s streets had visible evidence of smoking-related litter when inspected by Keep Wales Tidy.
As well as cigarette ends, the streets were littered with cigarette packets and the associated foil and cellophane wrapping, tobacco pouches and paper, cigarette lighters, matches and match-boxes.
Litter from smoking not only looks unpleasant but it is difficult to clean up - the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement which makes them almost impossible to remove by normal cleaning.
They also take up to 12 years to break down, can be eaten by children and animals and can contaminate water supplies because they contain toxic chemicals, such as cadmium, lead and zinc which leach into the soil and waterways.
Director of technical services Richard Workman said: “Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but we have fined two people in recent weeks for throwing cigarette ends our of their car windows. We have also fined people in the past for dropping cigarette ends in the street and will not hesitate to do so in the future. It looks unsightly and is difficult to clean up as the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement. This also makes it very expensive to clean up.”
Council education and awareness officers will be at Carmarthen market on Wednesday, March 24 and the St Elli Shopping Centre in Llanelli on Thursday, April 1 between 11am and 3pm along with Radio Carmarthenshire/Scarlet FM and ‘Sid the Cig’ to raise awareness of smoking-related litter and to encourage people to put their butts in the bin.
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones said: “I hope people take notice of this campaign, our aim is to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“We have a number of new litter bins being installed into our town centres which include ashtrays for cigarette ends, so there’s no excuse.”
The fixed penalty notices were issued by council environmental enforcement officers in two separate incidents in Llanelli and Carmarthen – and on both occasions their excuse was that cigarette ends weren’t litter!
The fines were handed out ahead of a Carmarthenshire County Council campaign against smoking-related litter. Residents are being urged to stub it, bin it and help keep Carmarthenshire clean or they too could be fined £75 - or more if prosecuted through the magistrates court.
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire. In fact, 83 per cent of the county’s streets had visible evidence of smoking-related litter when inspected by Keep Wales Tidy.
As well as cigarette ends, the streets were littered with cigarette packets and the associated foil and cellophane wrapping, tobacco pouches and paper, cigarette lighters, matches and match-boxes.
Litter from smoking not only looks unpleasant but it is difficult to clean up - the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement which makes them almost impossible to remove by normal cleaning.
They also take up to 12 years to break down, can be eaten by children and animals and can contaminate water supplies because they contain toxic chemicals, such as cadmium, lead and zinc which leach into the soil and waterways.
Director of technical services Richard Workman said: “Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but we have fined two people in recent weeks for throwing cigarette ends our of their car windows. We have also fined people in the past for dropping cigarette ends in the street and will not hesitate to do so in the future. It looks unsightly and is difficult to clean up as the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement. This also makes it very expensive to clean up.”
Council education and awareness officers will be at Carmarthen market on Wednesday, March 24 and the St Elli Shopping Centre in Llanelli on Thursday, April 1 between 11am and 3pm along with Radio Carmarthenshire/Scarlet FM and ‘Sid the Cig’ to raise awareness of smoking-related litter and to encourage people to put their butts in the bin.
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones said: “I hope people take notice of this campaign, our aim is to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“We have a number of new litter bins being installed into our town centres which include ashtrays for cigarette ends, so there’s no excuse.”
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