Special ‘butt pouches’ are now offer from Erewash Borough Council as part of its campaign to stop smokers dropping cigarette ends on the streets.
The Council’s Pride in Erewash Campaign has provided the free pouches and has 2,000 to give away in another flagship project aimed at helping make the borough a cleaner and better place.
The pouches enable smokers to stub out their cigarettes inside the pouch and then keep it until they reach a bin to empty the contents.
Richard Windsor, Erewash Borough Council’s Pride in Erewash Co-ordinator, said:
“I would encourage all our residents who smoke and who want to help the environment to pick up a butt pouch and use it when smoking on our streets.
“We all have a responsibility to try to keep our Borough clean and it is not acceptable for smokers to discard their cigarette butts on the streets hoping that someone else will clean up after them. Smokers should be warned that dropping cigarette butts is a littering offence and, if they are caught, they may face an on-the-spot fine of £75 or being taken to court.”
The 2,000 free butt pouches are available from the Council’s receptions at Ilkeston and Long Eaton Town Halls and will be issued on a first-come-first-served basis.
NOTES TO EDITORS
Cigarette Butts - The Facts:
- It can take between 18 months and 500 years for a stub to decompose
- Cigarette filters are made of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic which does not quickly degrade and persists in the environment
- Cigarette butts have been found in the stomachs of birds, fish and other marine animals and wildlife
