In recent years we’ve been so focused on the war between smoking and vaping that we have failed to recognise the devastating effects that smoking cigarettes has had on our environment. Similar to our own health benefits, there are many environmental benefits that come when making the switch from tobacco cigarettes to electronic cigarettes.
Saving the trees
540 million trees are cut down every single year solely for the purpose of cigarette production. With 5.5 trillion cigarettes consumed each year, the cigarette trade massively contributes to deforestation.
Not only are tobacco plants surrounded by very dense areas of forest that are destroyed throughout the production process, but a rising number of producing companies are now also burning precious wood to create the fire needed to dry tobacco leaves.
We can no longer afford to put the environmental impact of our actions to the back of our mind, so making small changes like switching from cigarettes to vaping could make a huge difference.
Minimising litter
A study found that cigarette butts were the most littered item in the world, and that they amounted to about 30% of all litter. It was also revealed that 4.5 trillion cigarettes were littered worldwide every single year.
The shocking statistics don’t stop there, as 1.69 billion pounds of toxic waste comes from cigarette butts, whilst the actual production process of tobacco cigarettes puts both humans and the environment at risk from huge amounts of waste.
Toxic substances can make their way into our water supply and contaminate the soil we rely so heavily on for agricultural purposes.
Unlike the 12 years it takes for cigarette butts to disintegrate and decay, vape components can be naturally recycled and reused. E-cigarettes aren’t replaced frequently like cigarettes, and you use your vape numerous times before you recycle batteries, refills, tanks and e-liquid bottles.
With smoking rates continuing to decline as people find healthier alternatives, the amount of un-recyclable cellophane wrappers in circulation have also reduced as a result.
Reducing air pollution
Tobacco cigarettes contribute to the destruction of the atmosphere, and cigarette smoke creates 10 times more air pollution than a diesel engine left running for 30 minutes.
Whilst the 2.6 billion kilograms of carbon dioxide and the 5.2 billion kilograms of methane released into the atmosphere may not be particularly harmful to humans, the two greenhouse gases can have a devastating impact on the environment and global warming.
Smoking accounts for more than 80,000 tonnes of air pollution, however in comparison, the absence of toxic chemicals in e-cigarettes mean that they pose no threat to the environment.
Saving the oceans
It’s not just the atmosphere and the trees being harmed through smoking, sea creatures are also at risk. Tobacco cigarettes are made from thousands of different toxic chemicals, and when cigarettes end up in the oceans, arsenic, ammonia, benzene and lead all leak into the water.
Fish also mistake cigarette butts for worms and insects and end up ingesting the cigarette and suffering from the chemical composition.
If there is any hope of us saving our environment from disaster in the next 12 years, then we must follow by the example of young advocates for environmental rights and go green. Save your environment. Make the switch today.
For more information on vaping and swithcing to e-cigarettes, please contact Joe’s Juice, a manufacturer of premium wholesale e-liquid in the UK.
