Abundance and Distribution of Cigarette Butts on Coastal Environments: Examples from Southern Spain

Asensio-Montesinos, Francisco; Ramírez, Milagrosa Oliva; Aguilar-Torrelo, María Teresa; Anfuso, Giorgio

doi:10.3390/jmse9020129

Cited by 29 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 61 publications

(94 reference statements)

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“…This finding is consistent with another study where no cigarette butts were found on remote beaches from the Moroccan Mediterranean coast (Maziane et al, 2018). On other remote beaches, cigarette butts were observed in a few surveys (Katarzytėet al, 2020;Asensio-Montesinos et al, 2021). On the Ecuadorian village beaches surveyed here, the low number of cigarettes is similar to that reported in the same places assessed by Gaibor et al (2020).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

A temporal assessment of anthropogenic marine debris on sandy beaches from Ecuador’s southern coast

Salazar

Gonzalez²,

Navarrete³

et al. 2022

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Anthropogenic marine debris (AMD) is an environmental pollution that affects marine life, human health, wellbeing, and the economy. This marine litter can deposit in the coastlines, particularly on tidal zones and beaches. To pursue future mitigation strategies to reduce AMD is important to monitor the amount, type and frequency of litter being dumped on shores. This study presents the composition, temporal distribution, abundance and size of AMD on three sandy beaches from Guayas province, Ecuador. The field data was recollected from December 2018 to February 2020. A total of 12,362 items of AMD were collected with an abundance of 1.95 macro-litter items/m2. The composition of AMD was marked by the predominance of plastic items (91.8%), followed by wood and cloth (1.9%), while cigarettes were only present in village beaches. Our results suggest that sites with more AMD abundance are beaches nearby small coastal villages and fishing communities. Also, the AMD abundance is slightly higher at the beginning of the dry season than in the rainy season. Our findings indicate that it is necessary to implement concerted solid waste management measures and proactive environmental education programs to empower the local population, as well as investigate the anthropogenic sources and other variables influencing the AMD abundance coming onto sandy shores.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

A temporal assessment of anthropogenic marine debris on sandy beaches from Ecuador’s southern coast

Salazar

Gonzalez²,

Navarrete³

et al. 2022

Front. Mar. Sci.

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“…Other studies focused on a single type of litter. For instance, the abundance of cigarette butts in touristic beaches has been investigated due to the potential release of highly toxic chemicals, such as heavy metals, aliphatic and unsaturated hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, among others ( Asensio-Montesinos et al, 2021 ; Soleimani et al, 2022 ). In the case of PPE, the most recent studies focused solely on this type of litter due to its unique characteristics (e.g., structure, components, and release of contaminants) ( Kutralam-Muniasamy et al, 2022 ; Sullivan et al, 2021 ) and unprecedented occurrence ( Cordova et al, 2021 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Personal protective equipment (PPE) pollution driven by the COVID-19 pandemic along the shoreline of Lake Tana, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia

Aragaw

De-la-Torre

Teshager

2022

Science of The Total Environment

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Personal protective equipment (PPE) pollution has become one of the most pending environmental challenges resulting from the pandemic. While various studies investigated PPE pollution in the marine environment, freshwater bodies have been largely overlooked. In the present study, PPE monitoring was carried out in the vicinity of Lake Tana, the largest lake in Ethiopia. PPE density, types, and chemical composition (FTIR spectroscopy) were reported. A total of 221 PPEs were identified with a density ranging from 1.22 × 10 −5 PPE m −2 (control site S1) to 2.88× 10 −4 PPE m −2 with a mean density of 1.54 × 10 −4 ± 2.58 × 10 −5 PPE m −2 . Mismanaged PPE waste was found in all the sampling sites, mostly consisting of surgical face masks (93.7%). Statistical analyzes revealed significantly higher PPE densities in sites where several recreational, touristic, and commercial activities take place, thus, revealing the main sources of PPE pollution. Furthermore, polypropylene and polyester fabrics were identified as the main components of surgical and reusable cloth masks, respectively. Given the hazard that PPEs represent to aquatic biota (e.g., entanglement, ingestion) and their ability to release microplastics (MPs), it is necessary to implement sufficient solid waste management plans and infrastructure where lake activities take place. Additionally, local authorities must promote and ensure sustainable tourism in order to maintain the ecosystems in Lake Tana. Prospective research priorities regarding the colonization and degradation of PPE, as well as the release of toxic chemicals, were identified and discussed.

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“…This is largely due to the prevalent misperception that cigarette butts are biodegradable and made of plastic. Similarly, another study concluded that the following aspects are favoring cigarette butt buildup on Spain's southern coast: seasonality and number of beach visitors, beach typology (remote, rural, village, or urban areas), and the frequency of cleaning activities conducted [24].…”

Section: Theoretical and Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Smokers’ Attitude and Behavior towards Cigarette Littering in Romania: A Survey-Based Approach

et al. 2023

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Cigarette butts continue to be a significantly detrimental challenge for both human health and the quality of the environment and life in general. The escalating accumulation of inadequately discarded cigarette butts continues unabated, in spite of the myriad legislative procedures that have been instituted by authorities with the objective of incentivizing diminution of this phenomenon. For decades, the scientific literature has discussed the importance of smokers’ behavior and beliefs in contributing to the problem. Thus, the objective of this study is to analyze cigarette butt littering behavior using a survey-based questionnaire. A total of 1643 complete responses were collected from Romanian smokers addressing their knowledge, practices, and views regarding the disposal of cigarette butts. According to the findings, awareness about the impacts and characteristics of cigarette butts is problematic, as are smokers’ self-reported explanations for their conduct. Specifically, more than 30% of the sample stated that cigarette butts are biodegradable, and 31.5% believe that cigarette butts are not toxic to the environment. The results also showed that only 19.7% of the smokers strongly believed that they should be considered accountable for their behavior. Future study directions are provided to advance studies in this area and improve present approaches to lessen the frequency of this behavior.

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Abundance and Distribution of Cigarette Butts on Coastal Environments: Examples from Southern Spain

Cited by 29 publications

References 61 publications

A temporal assessment of anthropogenic marine debris on sandy beaches from Ecuador’s southern coast

A temporal assessment of anthropogenic marine debris on sandy beaches from Ecuador’s southern coast

Personal protective equipment (PPE) pollution driven by the COVID-19 pandemic along the shoreline of Lake Tana, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia

Smokers’ Attitude and Behavior towards Cigarette Littering in Romania: A Survey-Based Approach

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