Cigarette butt woman fined
A woman has been fined for throwing a cigarette butt out of a car window at Llanelli’s Parc Trostre.
The incident happened in the B&Q car park on Saturday morning.
The 50-year-old was issued with a fixed penalty notice of £75 by the council’s environmental enforcement officers who were on patrol in the area.
Failure to pay could lead to prosecution in the magistrates court and a maximum fine of up to £2,500.
It follows the launch of a council campaign to raise awareness of smoking-related litter and its consequences.
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire with 83 per cent of litter found on the county’s streets smoking-related.
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.
It is hoped that this latest fine will act as a warning to smokers who fail to bin their butts.
Director of technical services Richard Workman said: “Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but they are. They are also very difficult and very expensive to clean up. We do not want to fine people, but we will not hesitate to do so if they continue to litter in this way.”
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones added: “Our aim is to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“We are determined to make Carmarthenshire a cleaner, greener and safer place to live and work for everyone.”
The incident happened in the B&Q car park on Saturday morning.
The 50-year-old was issued with a fixed penalty notice of £75 by the council’s environmental enforcement officers who were on patrol in the area.
Failure to pay could lead to prosecution in the magistrates court and a maximum fine of up to £2,500.
It follows the launch of a council campaign to raise awareness of smoking-related litter and its consequences.
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire with 83 per cent of litter found on the county’s streets smoking-related.
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.
It is hoped that this latest fine will act as a warning to smokers who fail to bin their butts.
Director of technical services Richard Workman said: “Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but they are. They are also very difficult and very expensive to clean up. We do not want to fine people, but we will not hesitate to do so if they continue to litter in this way.”
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones added: “Our aim is to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“We are determined to make Carmarthenshire a cleaner, greener and safer place to live and work for everyone.”
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