While walking along the coast, one can come across broken bottles, plastic toys and food wrappers among others, but cigarette butts appear to be the most common.

POLLUTION | 05/10/19   In fact, cigarette butts are a prevalent, lasting, and toxic form of marine debris, that can potentially harm marine organisms and their environments. Cigarette butts initially reach the waterways through their improper disposal on beaches, rivers and land and are transported to the coats by rainwater.   Moreover, the 2018 International Coastal Cleanup Report, by the Ocean Conservancy reported that 2,412,151 cigarette butts were collected in 2017 universally, which constitutes an increase from the 2016 number of 1,863,838 butts worldwide.   Cigarette filters contain a plastic-like material called cellulose acetate which on one hand may be easy in its production, but is not easily degradable on the other hand. Notably, the fibers in the filters act just like plastic in the ocean. The UV rays from the sun break down the fibers into smaller chunks that don't vanish from the ocean, which eventually translates to one single filter ending up to many tiny micro-plastics in the waters.   The U.S. Federal government created the NOAA Marine Debris Program in order to address the marine debris problem.   NOAA recommends that there are some handful tips about what we can do in order to keep the oceans free form cigarette butts, lighters and cigar tips, such as:

• If you are a smoker, place your cigarette butt in a proper receptacle or buy a pocket ashtray for that matter. This can be like a metal box or vinyl purse that fits in your pocket or bag until you potentially properly dispose them in the trash.
• Recycle the butts if possible. Check to see if there any schemes in your area. The City of Vancouver, and other organizations like TerraCycle, will actually recycle your filters for you.
• Organize cleanups with your local community and document your findings in the Marine Debris Tracker App. Moreover, communicate the importance of proper disposal in your own community.

CARE, for Cups Are REcyclable, collects and compresses foam cups, then sends them to the Dart Container Corp. for processing into picture frames and crown molding, and TerraCycle turns discarded cigarette butts into plastic shipping pallets, park benches and picnic tables.

CARE, for Cups Are REcyclable, collects and compresses foam cups, then sends them to the Dart Container Corp. for processing into picture frames and crown molding, and TerraCycle turns discarded cigarette butts into plastic shipping pallets, park benches and picnic tables.

CARE, for Cups Are REcyclable, collects and compresses foam cups, then sends them to the Dart Container Corp. for processing into picture frames and crown molding, and TerraCycle turns discarded cigarette butts into plastic shipping pallets, park benches and picnic tables.

Terracycle, a New Jersey-based company, will then separate the ash, tobacco and rolling paper and turn all of it into industrial fertilizer. The cigarette filters will help create plastic shipping palettes and outdoor furniture. What’s more, 60,000 butts make a park bench and 165,000 a picnic table, Gusoff reported.

“The amount of high-end PCR (postconsumer resin) available on the market is finite,” said Brett Stevens, global vice president of material sales and procurement at Trenton, New Jersey-based TerraCycle. “The reason it’s finite is because curbside collection levels are stable. If levels are stable and producers are oversold, where is the supply coming from?”

You’ve finished your Garnier Fructis Style Curl Treat. Now place it in a box, print a free shipping label at TerraCycle.com, and mail it. The program turns the plastic into raised beds, lumber, and more for Garnier Green Gardens.

Se não fizer nada na pessoa física, nada vai mudar – coloca Marcelo Ebert da YVY, um dos integrantes do Painel: Economia Circular, Muito Além da Reciclagem, parte da programação do Encontro Lixo Zero São Paulo 2019. Ele se refere às mudanças de comportamento que estão viabilizando novos produtos e serviços com impacto ambiental reduzido, nulo ou até regenerativo. “É uma mudança gigante, mas muito rápida” – arremata Marcelo.

The drug-store chain is partnering with the waste management company TerraCycle, Starlight Children's Foundation and Colgate-Palmolive in the nationwide recycling effort. The state that collects the most waste will win a new playground, made from recycled oral waste, at a Starlight Children's Foundation member hospital.

The drug-store chain is partnering with the waste management company TerraCycle, Starlight Children's Foundation and Colgate-Palmolive in the nationwide recycling effort. The state that collects the most waste will win a new playground, made from recycled oral waste, at a Starlight Children's Foundation member hospital.