How smokers slow down plant growth

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

According to the World Health Organization, the number of smokers in the world has already reached the billion mark and many of them are throwing their cigarette butts past the trash can. At the same time, many do not even realize that the mountains of cigarette butts are the very plastic waste that literally destroys our planet. Researchers at the University of England Ruskin have shown how much one cigarette thrown on the ground interferes with plant growth.

Cigarette butts are indeed plastic waste. The fact is that cigarette filters, which supposedly reduce the amount of tar and nicotine in the inhaled smoke, are made from a plastic called cellulose acetate. According to the calculations of scientists, it takes from one and a half to ten years for the complete decomposition of this material. During this time, its chemical composition manages to get into the soil and harm the plants.

Harm of cigarettes

To prove this, scientists conducted a simple experiment. They threw a cigarette butt into a pot in which grew white clover, a plant that is quite resistant to temperature and humidity changes that serves as a lawn in almost all parks in the world. In just 21 days in the pot, the stub slowed down clover growth by 27%, and noticeably shortened its length. Slower growth has also been seen in the case of a lawn grass called ryegrass.

According to scientists, it makes no difference whether a person throws out a whole cigarette, or a cigarette butt - harm to the environment is done in any case. As one of the most abundant plants in parks, white clover plays a huge role in natural processes. For example, clover enriches the soil, saturating it with nitrogen, and also participates in pollination of plants - bees actively collect nectar from its flowers, and produce high-quality, white honey with a strong aroma.

Plastic trash in parks

To show the extent of the harm caused to nature by thrown out cigarettes on the ground, the researchers walked around several parks and counted the number of cigarette butts lying in them. In some areas, they found literally mountains of garbage - on one square meter at times there were more than 100 remnants of cigarettes. The researchers concluded that throwing cigarette butts past trash cans is becoming a social problem, and it's time for city dwellers to explain that cigarette filters take a long time to decompose and cause severe damage to plants.

Penalties for cigarettes

In some countries, for example, in Germany, for a cigarette butt thrown on the ground, you can get a rather large fine, or even go to jail. For example, in Munich and Hamburg, the size of the fine reaches 55 euros, which at the current exchange rate is about 4,000 rubles. If a person throws a cigarette out of the car, he commits a criminal offense and runs the risk of going to jail - a cigarette butt can cause a fire or a traffic accident. If people are killed in an accident that somehow happened due to a discarded cigarette, it is considered manslaughter.

They want to pass similar bills in Russia as well. For example, in 2017, in the decree "On fire-prevention regime", a clause appeared prohibiting throwing cigarettes and matches from the windows of trains and cars. There are reports that in some regions, such violations are fined for amounts of 2,000 rubles or more.