What is the Situation with Cigarette Related Litter ... - Keep Britain Tidy

uneven (eg cobbled) streets in Ireland in partnership with TASCQ 92 . The results of the pilotwill be monitored and included in this document in the future.Some aspects for consideration when purchasing suction equipment are the weight ofthe equipment, its size and the level of suction. Oversized equipment can be awkwardto negotiate in small areas, making the collection of cigarette butts in ‘nooks andcrannies’ difficult. If the equipment is heavier than the bearing load of the pavement,the substrate could be affected making the pavement vulnerable to cracking. Not onlydoes this provide more cracks for cigarette litter to accumulate, it also means that thesubstrate can be inhaled by the equipment, compromising the quality of the surface.Finally, the suction level of the equipment should not be set too high, as further substratecan be removed by excess suction, further contributing to the problems describedabove 93 .In order to avoid some of these issues, aspects of streetscape design could beconsidered (especially in areas that attract cigarette litter) to discourage cigarette litterand assist with its clean-up. Considerations include:• Surfaces- Absorbancy should be minimised, and surfaces should be sensiblycoloured. Further, surfaces that resist cracking should also be considered.• Joints - Joints should be butted up in order to minimize gaps. Bagged / brushed jointsare preferable as they create a smooth finish 94 .6.2.2 AshtraysAshtrays can be either permanent (i.e wall/post mounted or free standing) or portable,and should be purchased / installed in response to a particular context - EG wallmounted ashtrays may be suitable for building entrances, while freestanding ashtraysmay be more suitable for street installation.6.2.2.1 Portable ashtraysPortable ashtrays are small enough to be carried around by smokers, and are designedto store cigarette butts until they can be disposed appropriately in a garbage bin. Thebenefit of the portable ashtray is that it provides an immediate disposal option for a litcigarette butt in any context. A range of portable ashtrays are on the market, as listed inTable 5.In market research undertaken by ENCAMS, most smokers initial reaction to the portableashtray was to dismiss the idea of using one, because they perceived that it would smell,they would be bulky to carry around and would be a potential fire hazard 95 . However,after a sample of these smokers were asked to road test the ashtrays, the majority ofsmokers (80%) continued to use them in certain circumstances after one week. The mostlikely usage scenarios were at transport hubs (eg train station platform, bus stops) orwhen smokers were on their own. They were least likely to use them in the car, in apub/club or at home.92 Pers comm. (27 Feb 2006) Micheal O John Mahony, An Taisce93 Pers comm. (May 2006) Brian Johnson, ENCAMS94 Pers comm. (May 2006) Brian Johnson, ENCAMS95 ENCAMS (Sept 2005) Cigarette related litter, Stage 2 DebriefSituation Report - Final 25