Montpelier, Vermont – TerraCycle, the world’s leader in the collection and repurposing of complex waste streams, has joined forces with Central Vermont Solid Waste Management District (CVSWMD) and local community organizations to recycle the world’s most littered item – cigarette butts. After being shipped to TerraCycle, the waste collected through the program is processed into plastic pellets for use in a variety of recycled products while the remaining tobacco is composted.   “Although we don’t want to encourage smoking, cigarettes aren’t going away anytime soon and when possible it’s part of our mission to keep materials out of the landfill and send them to outlets to recapture as many embedded resources as possible,” said Charlotte Low, former operations manager for CVSWMD. “Our program really gained steam when a group dubbed the “Trash Tramps”, a group of Monteplier senior citizens, volunteered to pick-up littered butts throughout the city and applied for a CVSWMD grant to place cigarette receptacles in highly-traveled areas, as well.”   On average, The Trash Tramps’ volunteers collect about 5 gallons of cigarette butts every two weeks, which translates to a significant amount of waste being diverted from sidewalks, parks, landfills, or even our shared waterways.   Through this program, CVSWMD is not only addressing the nation’s most commonly littered item but also a form of potentially harmful plastic waste. Since implementing the program, six cigarette collection receptacles have been placed near exceptionally busy street-corners, benches and parking lots throughout Montpelier. CVSWMD also provided grant funding to the Union Agricultural Society to purchase three cigarette butlers located throughout the Turnbridge fairgrounds.   Participating in TerraCycle’s Cigarette Recycling Program is CVSWMD’s latest effort to grow their socially-responsible, environmental initiatives. In addition to introducing cigarette recycling, CVSWMD’s works to set a sustainable-example for the community through operation of the Additional Recyclables Collection Center (ARCC) in Barre City where nearly 40 hard-to-recycle materials, including shoes, pellet bags, and waste from various TerraCycle brand-sponsored collection programs are aggregated.   All of the collected waste collected through the Cigarette Recycling Program is shipped to TerraCycle for recycling. When processed, the paper and tobacco is separated from the filter and composted. The filter is recycled into plastic pellets which can be used by manufacturers to make a number of products such as shipping pallets, ashtrays and park benches.   “These receptacles will help keep Montpelier free of one of the most littered items on the planet,” said Tom Szaky, the founder and CEO of TerraCycle. “With this program, Central Vermont Solid Waste Management District is taking a step to reduce the amount of trash going to landfill while also preserving the area’s natural beauty.”   TerraCycle has collected hundreds of millions of cigarette butts globally. Additionally, through its various recycling programs, it has engaged over 200 million people across 21 countries to collect and recycle more than eight billion pieces of waste that were otherwise non-recyclable.