are caused by carelessly discarded burning cigarette butts.Cigarette disposal and
the environment
Over 32 billion cigarettes are smoked in Australia each
year. If the butts from these cigarettes were placed end
to end, they would circle the planet 16 times.
Litter caused by cigarettes butts is a significant
problem in Australia. Nearly 7 BILLION cigarette
butts are not disposed of properly in Australia every
year. Consequently nearly 7% of bushfires, which are
responsible for 14 deaths each year, are caused by
carelessly discarded burning cigarette butts.3
The Poisons Information Centre received 61 calls from
January – September 2005 from parents whose toddlers
had been exposed (possible swallowing or placing butts
in mouths) to cigarette butts.4