Published at 17 May, 2022 10:23.
Cigarette waste can pollute soil, beaches and waterways, studies have also shown that cigarette waste is harmful to wildlife. Especially as cigarette butts can cause pollution by being carried to drains and from there to rivers, beaches, and oceans.
The tobacco industry has an annual greenhouse gas contribution of 84 megatons carbon dioxide equivalent, this industry contributes to climate change and reduces climate resilience, wasting resources and damaging ecosystems.
“The environmental impacts of tobacco using adds unnecessary pressure to our planet’s already scarce resources and fragile ecosystems. This is especially dangerous for developing countries, as that’s where most of the tobacco production happens.” said Dr Ruediger Krech, Director of Health Promotion, “Every cigarette you smoke, you are literally burning resources where they are already scarce, burning resources where our very existence depends upon.”
The Numbers
100 million – the estimated number of people killed by smoking during the 20th century
8 million – the number of people who died from smoking in 2017
15% - the percentage of global deaths that are attributed to smoking
70 – the age over which more than half of the deaths occur due to smoking
1-in-5 – the number of adults in the world who smoke tobacco
7 million – the number of deaths among the 1.3 billion tobacco users that occurred due to direct smoking
1.2 million – the number of deaths among the 1.3 billion tobacco users that occurred due to secondhand smoking
Are you wanting to be smokefree by No Tobacco Day or well on your way to being smokefree?
Talk to one of our advisors today:
Quit online - https://yorkshiresmokefree.nhs.uk/pages/quit-online
Our online quit tool will allow you to create your own personal profile and will support you on a daily basis through your quit journey.
Telephone support - our advisors are on hand to answer any questions or provide additional support as you need it. You can call 0800 612 0011 (free from landlines) or 0330 660 1166.
Visit our frequently asked questions section to find out more: https://yorkshiresmokefree.nhs.uk/frequently-asked-questions
