Study on the Awareness of Cigarette Butt as a Potential Environmental Hazard

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-3745229/v1

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Study on the Awareness of Cigarette Butt as a Potential Environmental Hazard

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3745229/v1

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Cigarette butt pollution is a global environmental concern with profound health and ecological ramifications. This study addresses the pressing need for coordinated efforts involving the public, manufacturers, lawmakers, and citizens to manage and mitigate the detrimental consequences of this pervasive pollutant. The research focuses on the younger generation's awareness of this issue.

The survey encompassed 454 respondents, primarily comprising individuals aged 13–19 years (60%), with a substantial representation of females (64%). Encouragingly, an overwhelming majority (97%) recognized cigarette butts as pollutants, irrespective of gender, highlighting substantial public awareness. Notably, respondents reported encountering cigarette debris in public places, often witnessing improper disposal, such as in drains, contributing to water pollution.

While respondents exhibited reasonable awareness of the hazards linked to cigarette butts, including fires and harm to wildlife, only 42% were aware of their role in ocean pollution, suggesting a knowledge gap. Notably, despite awareness, improper disposal remains a concern, indicating societal insensitivity. This underscores the need for enhanced public education.

The study concludes with recommendations, including awareness campaigns and biodegradable filters, to address cigarette butt pollution. Comprehensive interventions and legislation against careless disposal are essential. This research aims to stimulate further interdisciplinary exploration and draw policymakers' attention to reducing this potential pollutant's impact through sustainable methods.

Cigarette

Cigarette butts (CBs)

Cigarette butt pollution

Smoking

Environmental pollution

Environmental education

Public awareness

Cigarette butts, the remains of cigarettes after smoking are tiny and tend to be neglected but are a form of non-biodegradable litter (Araújo & Costa, 2019). Cigarette butts are often discarded on streets which find their way to drains, and eventually to the water bodies. According to WHO, ‘Cigarette butts account for 30–40% of all items collected in coastal and urban clean-ups’ (WHO, 2017). Even if the residues of cigarettes seem small, they are generated in large amounts. It has been estimated that nearly 6 trillion cigarettes are smoked every year worldwide and about 4.5 trillion cigarettes are littered in the environment which makes, Cigarette butts the most common form of litter in the world (Araújo & Costa, 2019).

According to WHO, ‘Tobacco waste contains over 7000 toxic chemicals that poison the environment, including human carcinogens’ (WHO, 2017). Smoking cigarettes can be a root cause of several health problems such as Cancer, heart attack and strokes, lung diseases, etc. (WHO, 2017). People getting exposed to secondhand smoke (also called environmental tobacco smoke, involuntary smoking, and passive smoking) can directly affect a person’s heart (with an estimated increased risk of 25–30% of developing heart disease) and blood vessels along with inflamed airways (Logue et al., 2017). According to a scientific report published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, ‘a person smoking a pack of 20 cigarettes per day for 50 years is responsible for 1.4 million liters of water depletion’ (Dunning & Wilson, 2018). The tobacco industry can cause severe impacts on the environment as nearly 600 million trees are chopped down each year along with annual production of about 64 million metric tons of carbon dioxide globally (Tobacco Free Life, 2016a). The toxic chemicals from cigarettes pose a serious health threat to humans, wildlife, and aquatic organisms (Kurmus & Mohajerani, 2020). One of the studies showed how organic compounds (like nicotine, and PAH) along with metalloids from cigarette butts leach into aquatic ecosystems, which are toxic to aquatic creatures (Akhbarizadeh et al., 2021; Green et al., 2014).

This study aims to bring attention to the severity of the pollution caused by littering cigarette butts and to understand its impact on humans and the environment. The review of the paper includes the components and toxicity of cigarette butts along with the potential impacts on humans, the environment, and the economy.

Study Background:

1.1 Components of Cigarette filters

Owing to the widespread nature and the magnitude of cigarette butts released into the environment, it is important to understand the composition of cigarette butts in order to evaluate their potential impacts on nature. A cigarette filter along with cigarette paper, capsules, and adhesives is a part of the cigarette that was introduced in the early 1950s and specially designed to absorb vapors and accumulate particulate smoke components (In Wikipedia). Filters come with advantages like preventing tobacco from passing into the smoker’s mouth along with a medium as a mouthpiece that will not crumble as the cigarette is smoked. Cigarette filters look like white cotton but are actually made of plastic fibers of cellulose acetate which makes them non-biodegradable as it takes nearly 10 years to decompose (In Wikipedia). Cigarette contains more than 4000 toxic chemicals such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, formaldehyde, etc. The cigarette butts contain pyrolysis and distillation products along with primary contaminants which eventually leach into the environment (Poppendieck et al., 2016).

1.2 Toxicity of Cigarette Butts

Cigarette butts are one of the most abundant forms of waste in the world, with thousands of chemicals along with micro- and nanoparticles that have a critical consequential impact on the health of humans, wildlife, and aquatic organisms (Kurmus & Mohajerani, 2020; Moroz et al., 2021). Cigarette butts are ubiquitous to terrestrial life which in due course make their way to freshwater and marine life, leaching various toxic chemicals that can remain for as long as 10 years (Kurmus & Mohajerani, 2020). The main toxic agents include polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, formaldehyde, argon, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, benzene, hydrocarbons, etc. (Soleimani et al., 2022).

1.2.1 Nicotine contamination

Cigarette butts contain nicotine which along with its metabolites, such as cotinine and trans-3’- hydroxyl cotinine make their passage to wastewater streams as they are littered (Benotti & Brownawell, 2007). Other means of transit to the environment are through cigarette production cigarette combustion and cigarette butts disposal. Nicotine has been found to increase oxidative damage, nicotine-mediated inhibition of nuclear factor erythroid, and elevated cortisol that may promote central obesity, PCOS, endothelial dysfunction, vascular inflammation, and many more (Rehman et al., 2021).

1.2.2 Tobacco- specific Nitrosamines (TSNA)

TSNA, one of the constituents of the complex mixture of chemicals present in cigarette smoke has been found to cause cancers of the lung, pancreas, esophagus, and oral cavity. TSNA has a direct impact on people who use tobacco products along with people who are exposed to secondhand smoke (Konstantinou et al., 2018).

1.2.3 Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)

Cigarette butts with partial or incomplete tobacco burning may contain high levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (Dobaradaran et al., 2020). The three most abundant PAHs in tobacco smoke Tar are the low molecular weight two-ring naphthalene, and the three-ring PAHs fluorene And phenanthrene. The PAHs are carcinogenic to humans and can remain in the environment for decades if present in higher or accumulated concentrations (Gong et al., 2020).

1.2.4 Carbon Monoxide

Cigarette smoking directly exposes the smoker to carbon monoxide which can increase the preoperative carbon monoxide levels. The estimated preoperative carbon monoxide level in the exhaled breath level may serve as an indicator of the potential risk of perioperative respiratory complications (Ozgunay et al., 2018).

1.3 Impacts on the environment

Cigarette litter is a notable concern to the environment as it contains chemicals such as arsenic (used to kill rats), lead, and heavy metals which seep into soil and water sources making their way into the food chain and thereby pressing the ecotoxicological challenges. Toxic exposure to such chemicals poses a serious threat to aquatic and terrestrial animals (Truth initiative, 2017; Qamar et al., 2020).

1.3.1 Microorganisms

Microorganisms include prokaryotes (bacteria), eukaryotes (fungi and protozoans), symbioses, and viruses. Littered cigarette butts can leach a significant amount of chemicals into the soil which affects the bacterial communities (Koroleva et al., 2021). The leachate constrains nicotine into the environment which can impair aquatic primary producers and hence predators at relevant concentrations (Oropesa et al., 2017). Therefore, population dynamics and food web interactions are affected to a great extent once nicotine enters aquatic systems.

One of the studies demonstrated the impact of CBs on the diversity of microbial communities in the environment where marine sediments were treated with smoked CBs for 96h. The result showed the microbial communities were altered with a decrease in two taxonomic families, Cyanobacteria (involved in primary production through photosynthesis) and Bacteroidetes (involved in organic matter biodegradation) (Quéméneur et al., 2020).

1.2.5 Aquatic organisms

Cigarette butts litter often washes off to aquatic bodies. CBs float for a long time prior to sinking (Dobaradaran et al., 2021). CBs along with their toxic chemicals (mainly nicotine and ethyl phenol– are toxic to marine life) along with metalloids might be ingested by diverse aquatic organisms which can have immunotoxic, morphotoxic, and mutagenic (Montalvão et al., 2019). Fishes, turtles, and seabirds frequently consume cigarette butts by mistaking them for food.

It has been found, at concentrations of one cigarette butt per liter of water, the toxins are lethal to small fish, and to planktonic organisms such as water fleas at one-eighth of this concentration. Several bioassays were tested and they concluded that marine assays were more affected by leachates than freshwater ones (Olivia et al., 2021).

1.3.3 Plants

Leachate of CBs contains nicotine which is one of the reasons for the elevated nicotine levels in plant commodities. Detection of elevated nicotine levels in plant tissues that are not known for endogenous nicotine synthesis, and where nicotine-containing insecticides had not been applied (Selmar et al, 2015; Weidner et al., 2005). High levels of nicotine cause human health risks which are a concern to the market causing economic losses for farmers and distributors (Semar et al., 2018).

Many studies have been conducted to demonstrate the impact of CBs and their associated smoke on the soil and plant processes. Montalvão et al. noted that the leachate of smoked CBs at environmental concentrations (1.9 µg/L of nicotine) had cytotoxic, genotoxic, and mutagenic effects on onion (Allium cepa) roots (Montalvão et al., 2018). Another study showed that discarded CBs reduced the germination success and shoot length after 21 days of both perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and white clover (Trifolium repens) (Green et al., 2019). The studies prove the potential of CB litter in reducing the net primary productivity of terrestrial plants.

1.3.4 Animals

The leachate of CBs contains various toxic compounds including nicotine, PAHs, metals, and volatile organic compounds which are known to be toxic to many aquatic organisms mainly zooplankton, frogs, snails, and fishes (Venugopal et al., 2021). The bioaccumulation of nicotine starting with plants and later on passing to animals have a great impact on the environment. The CB pollutants have a potential chronic impact on the growth and behavior of both aquatic and terrestrial animals. The non-biodegradable plastic CBs made of cellulose acetate are frequently consumed by animals which may lead to vomiting and neurological toxicity (Novotny et al., 2011). Cigarettes contain tobacco and it is known to be lethal to various mammals.

1.3.5 Humans

As noted earlier, the CB and its associated smoke contain thousands of chemicals that pose severe health issues to humans. Likewise, exposure to secondhand smoke also has critical impacts. The main components of the environment like water, soil, dust, and plants have been contaminated with tobacco, and water is a significant route to expose tobacco to humans. The bioaccumulation of nicotine in plants and animals presents a possible source for human exposure to nicotine in addition to metals, PAHs, and plastic nanoparticles.

Recent studies suggest that tobacco waste pollution is toxic to humans using mice and human cell-based assays. Bekele and Ashall demonstrated how mice that ingested CB leachate showed negative developmental effects (Bekele, T.T., 2019).

1.4 Waste Management System

Cigarette butts are abundant and widespread non-biodegradable waste in our environment. It is mainly composed of a cellulose acetate-based polymeric structure which makes CB take years to biodegrade and leach its toxic chemicals and heavy metals. Therefore, it is very important to find an appropriate method to recycle useful resources from waste.

Researchers have developed a novel encapsulation technique for CBs where they incorporated bitumen and wax-encapsulated cigarette butts in dense-graded asphalt preparation to recycle the CBs as a construction material (Rahman & Mohajerani, 2021). CBs consist of nicotine and harmine which has been used for the fabrication of N-doped carbon aerogel (NDC) via hydrothermal and carbonization processes (Alhokbany et al., 2020). Cigarette-derived functional carbon (CDFC) materials have been prepared by pyrolysis of CBs which applications in supercapacitors and water contaminant removal (Li et al., 2020). CBs are recycled into fired clay bricks and asphalt production without any pre-processing.

However, methods like absorbent material production, vector control, and use as a biofilm carrier in wastewater treatment need various processing methods (Torkashvand & Farzadkia, 2019). The current waste management system faces challenges and has inferior performance therefore basic strategies like reducing the littering rate and recycling are best for the management of this toxic abundant waste (Ghasemi et al., 2022).

1.5 Cigarette Butt as Potential Pollutant

Cigarette smoking is not just injurious to health but also has a greater overall environmental impact. Cigarettes are made from tobacco and the tobacco industry contributes significantly to global warming along with massive exploitation of human lives, trees, and natural resources (WHO, 2022). Smoke from these tobacco products contains fine particles in their additives and paper, containing over 7000 chemicals which after combustion release carcinogens. Thus, inhaling cigarette smoke through passive smoking has similar effects as active smoking in the form of increased genomic mutations, tumor-inducing inflammations, and epigenetic abnormalities (Kwit, 2022; Zhou, G., 2019). Besides being a major contributor to air pollution, cigarettes have now also become one of the most abundant sources of marine pollution. Their residues in the form of cigarette butts are often thrown about or tossed onto the streets, beaches, etc. from where they sweep into the drains and other water bodies.

These residual cigarette butts being lightweight are easily carried away by rain and get embedded in the water cycle, yielding their harmful effects on our marine ecosystem. Several studies have shown the potential of cigarette butts to pollute water as a more harmful source of pollution than plastic bags imparting their toxicity to aquatic life (Tobacco Free Life, 2016b; Kwit, 2020). Cigarette butts pose a great threat to our environment being the most littered item on the planet leading to catastrophic consequences due to their toxicity and retention which most people are unaware of.

The study was a cross-sectional survey primarily among the educated youth which was conducted online. The survey adopted a non-experimental research design to investigate the observations and awareness of urban youth about cigarette butts as a potential environmental pollutant.

The survey collected the responses primarily from undergraduate students and included the response of individuals who live in an urban set-up and were either smokers or lives around people who smoke. The response was collected for a period of 6 months from July 2022 to Jan 2023. The objective of the study was described in the questionnaire for the participants. Permission of the participants was taken in for using the data for research purposes and a declaration of confidentiality and anonymity was made.

For the effectiveness of the study, inclusion criteria were set as individuals with age 13 years and above, with no education level bounding. Both smokers and non-smokers were included in the study considering the impact to be similar to both. The responses were recorded, and frequencies were consolidated from the response sheet. The demographic details were segregated from the obtained data. The data was segregated to compare the responses of male and female respondents.

The questionnaire was peer-reviewed and was cross-evaluated by experts following the face and content validity techniques (Tanner, K., 2018). The initial draft of the questionnaire was distributed among the peer group and was assessed for meaningfulness and fulfillment of the desired objective. The suggestions and errors were rectified based on the suggestions by the peer review. The final questionnaire was evaluated by experts in public health research. The final questionnaire for the survey was shared via WhatsApp, Gmail, Facebook, and other message-sharing platforms. Statistical analysis was done by chi-square analysis to understand the difference between the opinions of the male and female respondents at a significance level of 0.05 (5%) with 1 degree of freedom.

A total of 454 responses were recorded during the survey, where 364 (80%) respondents were females, and 90 (20%) respondents were males. Of a total of 273 (60%) respondents in the age group of 13–19 years, 234 (64%) were females and 39 (43%) were males. 166 (37%) respondents were in the age group of 20–39 years and the rest fell in the age group between 40 and above. A significant difference in the percentage of males and females in the age groups of respondents was observed [χ² = 40.25 (3df)]. The mean age of the respondents was 23 years, while 13–19 years was the modal group. The age distribution of the study group is given in Table 1 and Fig. 1, along with the variation in the responses from males and females. About 90% (408) of the study group consisted of students, 6% (29) respondents were employed, and the remaining 4% (17) were unemployed youth (Fig. 2).

Table 1

Age distribution of study group
Age group	Females	Males	Total
13–19 years	234	39	273
20–39 years	119	47	166
40–49 years	8	4	12
60 + years	3	0	03
Total	364	90	454

It was notable that most respondents were non-smokers, yet they often encountered smokers in their surroundings. Given the equal significance of awareness regarding smoking's health and environmental impacts for both smokers and non-smokers, our study included both groups in the analysis (Fig. 3).

Awareness about different parameters such as composition, degradability, and hazards of cigarette and its butt in the environment were studied with the help of a questionnaire circulated among the study group.

3.1 Cigarettes as a litter:

A significant portion of respondents, 97%, recognized cigarettes as litter and pollution-causing agents. This awareness was consistent across genders, with 98% of females and 94% of males acknowledging it (refer to Fig. 4). Statistical analysis through a chi-square test indicated no significant association between gender and the perception of cigarette butts as litter [χ² = 1.584 at α = 0.05 (1 df) = 3.841]. Additionally, 78% of all respondents were aware that cigarette filters are made of plastic, causing toxic plastic pollution (Fig. 5). No significant gender-based differences were observed [χ² = 1.584]. Moreover, 87% of females and 89% of males were aware that cigarette (including filters) is non-biodegradable, while the remaining respondents believed it to be biodegradable [χ² = 0.1894] (Fig. 6).

3.2 Hazards of Cigarette butt:

81% of females and 76% of males were cognizant of the fact that cigarette butts can cause cigarette-induced fires which claim hundreds of lives, forest fires killing off wildlife and vegetation. No significant difference in the awareness of male and females was observed [χ² = 0.0714] (Fig. 7). However, only 42% of respondents were aware of the fact cigarette butts are the single greatest source of ocean trash, whereas the rest of the respondents could not correlate cigarette butt with ocean pollution (Fig. 8)

3.3 Disposal of Cigarette residues:

73.6% of respondents reported that they have seen cigarette butt residues near transportation sites such as bus stands and railway stations, near general stores, tourists places, public places like banks, and even schools and colleges (Fig. 9). To gain insights into the motivations behind these disposal practices, we asked respondents about their perceptions. 59% of respondents observed that people mostly discard them on streets randomly, 42% people have reported having observed dropping the butts while they are still burning, while 23.3% of individuals have reported seeing people disposing of the cigarette butts in the public drainage (Fig. 10). No significant difference was found in the disposal methods reported by male and female respondents [χ² = 1.092 (3df)]. The possible reasons for careless disposal of cigarette residue by smokers were attributed to the common belief of smokers that one cigarette butt won't cause any harm to the environment (26.2%), or cigarette filters are made of biodegradable cotton (3.1%). Some respondents also believed that people do not see cigarette butt as litter (11.1%). However, about 55.1% of respondents considered all the above reasons to be the potential cause for the irresponsible behavior of smokers. Many respondents believed that people do not care about the environment, or they do not consider it their responsibility to worry about environmental pollution (Fig. 11).

3.4 Suggestions to control Cigarette- butt littering:

When asked for their suggestion on talking about the problem of cigarette butt disposal, 72% of respondents suggested that there is a need to create awareness among smokers about the hazards of irresponsible disposal of the butts while 34.6% of respondents suggested that public health programs should run an anti-littering campaign (Fig. 12). 47% of respondents suggested the use of biodegradable filters in cigarettes. Some respondents (63%) suggested that there should be a ban on the manufacturing of plastic cigarette butts, while others suggested the introduction of an anti-litter law (37%).

Cigarette butt pollution is a pervasive environmental concern with significant health and ecological implications. There is an urgent need for attention from all the public sectors including the users, manufacturers, lawmakers, and the general public to manage and prevent the consequences caused by this pollutant. Significant damage is caused to the biota by the ingestion of leachate from cigarette butts due to soil and water pollution (Araújo & Costa, 2019).

The present survey is a pilot study to understand the awareness about this potential pollutant in the young generation.. The majority of respondents (60%) fell into the 13–19 years age group, with a significant proportion of females in this category (64%). The difference in the male-female response ratio in the study can be attributed to the fact that the primary study group was students from various colleges of the University of Delhi, many of which were women-only colleges. The study reveals that both males and females are equally aware and have similar observations on cigarette residue and issues related to it.

A key aspect of the study was to gauge respondents' awareness of cigarette butt pollution. Encouragingly, a vast majority of respondents (97%) recognized that cigarette butts are a form of litter and a source of pollution. This awareness is consistent across genders, with 98% of females and 94% of males acknowledging the issue. This finding suggests a high level of public awareness regarding the environmental impact of discarded cigarette butts. Public places such as bus stands, railway stations, banks, educational institutes, and tourist places are reported to be the common places where cigarette debris is commonly found. It was also a general observation that many people throw butts in the drain which causes water pollution. Many studies have revealed that leachate from the CBs is a major source of urban and ocean pollution (Araújo & Costa, 2019; Green et al., 2014; Dobaradaran et al., 2020). Cigarette butt contains a high amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) due to incomplete combustion of tobacco. Various studies show that the leached concentration of PAHs in water bodies has exceeded the permissive limits causing a potential health risk to human beings and aquatic organisms (Dobaradaran et al., 2020). The potentially toxic elements dissolve in the water bodies and integrate with the aquatic and terrestrial food web and pose a severe threat to human health (Akhbarizadeh et al., 2021).

Respondents demonstrated a reasonable level of awareness regarding the hazards associated with cigarette butts. Most respondents (around 80%) acknowledged the potential risks, such as fires, wildlife and vegetation damage, caused by improper disposal of cigarette butts. It is noteworthy that only 42% of respondents were aware of the significant role cigarette butts play in ocean pollution. This indicates a possible lack of public awareness regarding this aspect. Furthermore, a significant portion of respondents (78%) correctly identified cigarette filters as being made of plastic, which contributes to toxic plastic pollution. Interestingly, in spite of their awareness, the study revealed that people do not discard cigarette waste in a proper way. This indicates the insensitivity of people towards their surroundings and environmental health. Moreover, people who smoke, and discard cigarette butts carelessly, believe that a single butt would not be significant in causing any kind of pollution and some do not even consider it as litter (Fig. 11). This finding suggests a potential gap in public education on this specific aspect of cigarette butt pollution. Studies show that cigarette butts take a long time to decompose. Only 38% of CBs decompose in a period of 2 years (Bonanomi et al., 2015). The cellulose acetate filters present in the CBs sometimes take up to 10 years to decompose (Akhbarizadeh et al., 2021). This results in the leaching of heavy metals and toxic chemicals into the environment. The careless behavior of people in the disposal of CBs can add to this toxic load.

The study concludes with respondents' suggestions for addressing cigarette butt pollution. A majority (72%) advocated for awareness campaigns targeting smokers to educate them about the hazards of irresponsible butt disposal. This aligns with the need to bridge the gap in understanding and behavior among smokers. It was also suggested that the use of biodegradable and non-plastic filters could be an effective solution to reduce the pollution caused by CBs disposal. There is a need for interventions at various levels including public health bodies, environmental agencies, and policymakers to tackle the issue of littering and pollution caused by CBs. Suggestions for awareness programs and anti-littering movements were prominent in the study. It is important to have proper laws against the careless disposal of CBs.

Pollution in any form has a deep economic and emotional impact worldwide. The pollution caused by cigarette butts is ubiquitous and environmentally hazardous and generates economic and social costs.

The current study aims to highlight the complexity of the issue to initiate a discussion on how to act in a coordinated way to reduce this type of pollution in urban areas. It sheds light on public awareness and behavior regarding cigarette butt pollution. While there is a commendable level of awareness among respondents, particularly regarding cigarette butt litter and its composition, there remains room for improvement in educating the public about the broader environmental impact, including ocean pollution.

Additionally, addressing the common disposal practices of cigarette butts is a critical area for intervention. The suggestion of the introduction of anti-litter law pertaining to cigarette butt littering has come up as a prominent outcome of this study. Our findings emphasize the importance of awareness campaigns, targeted education for smokers, and the implementation of sustainable solutions to mitigate cigarette butt pollution, ultimately contributing to a cleaner and healthier environment.

We hope that our work will encourage Indian scholars from various disciplines to undertake more structural research in this regard. Furthermore, we believe that the present study would draw the attention of the policymakers and stimulate them to draft policies to address the lack of awareness of the public on this issue. This will help reduce the impact of this potential pollutant by adopting adequate sustainable and effective methods.

Ethics approval –

All authors have read, understood, and have complied as applicable with the statement on ‘Ethical responsibilities of Authors’ as found in the Instructions for authors. A consent form was filled out by the participants before the survey to use the information provided by them solely for research purposes and all the participants agreed to it.

Consent to participate-

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Consent to publish-

The authors affirm that human research participants provided informed consent for publication of the data provided by them.

Competing Interest –

All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Funding –

The authors declare that no funds, grants, or other support were received during the preparation of this manuscript.

Authors’ contribution-

All the authors have made a substantial contribution to the survey-based study conducted to understand the awareness of people about cigarette butt pollution. Data collection and analysis were performed among the staff and the students of the University of Delhi and each author contributed equally towards it. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Hiba Iqbal and Jyotsna Singh. The data analysis and interpretation through figures were conducted by Sushma Bhardwaj. Meenakshi Thakur drafted the finalized manuscript and revised it critically. All the authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Acknowledgment

The authors would like to thank all the anonymous persons for participating in the questionnaire survey.

Availability of data and material –

Data collection was done through a survey (a Google form) among the students and staff of the University of Delhi.

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Study on the Awareness of Cigarette Butt as a Potential Environmental Hazard

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Abstract

Figures

1 Introduction

1.1 Components of Cigarette filters

1.2 Toxicity of Cigarette Butts

1.2.1 Nicotine contamination

1.2.2 Tobacco- specific Nitrosamines (TSNA)

1.2.3 Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)

1.2.4 Carbon Monoxide

1.3 Impacts on the environment

1.3.1 Microorganisms

1.2.5 Aquatic organisms

1.3.3 Plants

1.3.4 Animals

1.3.5 Humans

1.4 Waste Management System

1.5 Cigarette Butt as Potential Pollutant

2 Methodology

3 Result

3.1 Cigarettes as a litter:

3.2 Hazards of Cigarette butt:

3.3 Disposal of Cigarette residues:

3.4 Suggestions to control Cigarette- butt littering:

4 Discussion

Conclusion

Declarations

Funding –

Authors’ contribution-

Acknowledgment

Availability of data and material –

References

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