Uptake of nicotine from discarded cigarette butts – A so far unconsidered path of contamination of plant-derived commodities

Selmar, Dirk; Radwan, Ahmed; Abdalla, Neama; Taha, Hussein; Wittke, Carina; El-Henawy, Ahmed; Alshaal, Tarek; Amer, Megahed; Kleinwächter, Maik; Nowak, Melanie; El-Ramady, Hassan

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2018.01.113

Cited by 51 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…1). In contrast, autotrophs have been underrepresented in CB toxicity studies, despite the importance of autotrophs in food webs and their potential ability to take up chemicals from CBs (uptake by terrestrial plants: Selmar, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cigarette butt effects on diatom health in a stream ecosystem

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Cigarette butts are a prevalent form of litter containing numerous toxic chemicals. Because cigarette butts are frequently deposited on the ground and carried into water bodies, greater understanding of the toxic effects of cigarette butts in aquatic ecosystems is needed. We examined the toxicity of cigarette butts to algal growth and diatom health-especially pertinent because of the strong ecological role of these organisms. We modified the agar-based nutrientdiffusing substrate method by using cigarette butt leachate (at 10, 5, 2.5, and 1.25 butts/l concentrations), a whole cigarette butt, and a plain agar control. After incubating for 10 days in a small stream, the biofilms from the diffusing substrates were assessed for algal biomass and diatom health (chloroplast intactness and size of lipid bodies in two abundant species of Navicula). There were no significant differences among the cigarette butt treatments for algal biomass or diatom health; hence, evidence of toxic effects was not found. Other studies have demonstrated cigarette butt leachate toxicity to fish and aquatic invertebrates, but these studies were done in closed systems. In contrast, in open stream ecosystems, effluent may be quickly diluted and carried away by water flow, and the complex chemical environment of streams likely includes leachate from a variety of riparian leaves that fell into the stream (i.e., algae are naturally exposed to low concentrations of a wide variety of secondary chemicals). Our results do not preclude the finding of toxicity of cigarette butt effluent to algae, including diatoms, in standard toxicity tests.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cigarette butt effects on diatom health in a stream ecosystem

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Regarding cigarette butts, the highly entangled network of the fibers mixed with plasticizers made the disintegration of butts very slow and difficult [7]. Moreover, cigarette butts have been shown to leach out heavy metals [8] and nicotine [9]. One cigarette butt soaked in a liter of water for 96 hours is the Lethal Concentration 50 for test fish exposed to cigarette butts leachates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cellulose Acetate Recovery from Cigarette Butts

Benavente

Caballero

Silvero

et al. 2019

Environment, Green Technology, and Engineering International Conference

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Cigarette butts are one of the most common types of litter all around the world. This waste when disposed of in the environment pose a major threat to living organisms and ecosystem health. Cigarette butts are mainly made of cellulose acetate (2.45 substitution) that biodegrades slowly and can take up to 18 months to break down under normal litter conditions. Cellulose acetate is a valuable polymer that can be used for a great variety of applications. In this communication, we present the results from an ongoing study addressed to value cigarette butt waste based on the recovery of the cellulose acetate by a methodology that includes several solid-liquid extractions and a chemical precipitation. For that purpose three samples of cigarette butts were prepared and they were extracted with 5% (w/v) NaCl aqueous solution, 5% (w/v) NaAc aqueous solution or 0,02% (w/v) H2SO4 aqueous solution. After that, they were further extracted with absolute ethanol and diethyl ether. The cleaned butts were suspended in acetone and distilled water was added until a white precipitate of cellulose acetate was formed. Cellulose acetate was characterised by FTIR-ATR and its melting point. Extracts were analized by ICP-MS and GC-MS.

show abstract

“…Elevated nicotine levels in commodity plants are a concern due to the human health risks, which may result in the commodity being pulled from the market, causing economic losses for farmers and distributors. In response to unexpectedly high levels of nicotine contamination, the European Union temporarily increased its maximum nicotine residue level in commodity crops so as to not overly burden the commerce of these products [201].…”

Section: Plantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of Environmental Pollution from the Use and Disposal of Cigarettes and Electronic Cigarettes: Contaminants, Sources, and Impacts

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

While the impacts of cigarette smoking on human health are widely known, a less recognized impact of tobacco product use and disposal is environmental pollution. This review discusses the current literature related to cigarette and e-cigarette contamination in the context of environmental sources and impacts, with a focus on the documented influences on biota, ranging from bacteria to mammals. Cigarette butts and electronic cigarette components can leach contaminants into soil, water, and air. Cellulose acetate cigarette filters comprising the butts are minimally degradable and are a source of bulk plastic and microplastic pollution, especially in aquatic ecosystems where they tend to accumulate. Cigarette combustion and aerosol production during e-cigarette use result in air contamination from sidestream, exhaled, and thirdhand pathways. The chemical byproducts of tobacco product use contaminate wastewater effluents, landfill leachates, and urban storm drains. The widespread detection of nicotine and cotinine in the environment illustrates the potential for large-scale environmental impacts of tobacco product waste. Studies show that cigarette butt leachate and nicotine are toxic to microbes, plants, benthic organisms, bivalves, zooplankton, fish, and mammals; however, there remain critical knowledge gaps related to the environmental impacts of tobacco product waste on environmental health and ecosystem functioning.

show abstract

Uptake of nicotine from discarded cigarette butts – A so far unconsidered path of contamination of plant-derived commodities

Cited by 51 publications

References 9 publications

Cigarette butt effects on diatom health in a stream ecosystem

Cigarette butt effects on diatom health in a stream ecosystem

Cellulose Acetate Recovery from Cigarette Butts

A Review of Environmental Pollution from the Use and Disposal of Cigarettes and Electronic Cigarettes: Contaminants, Sources, and Impacts

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About