Already restricted with where they are allowed to smoke, local councils are now being urged to clamp down on those smokers who throw their butts on the floor.
I can see arguments for both sides on this… Ideally, you shouldn’t ever need to throw your finished cigarette on the ground. However, if the council does not provide enough bins in the problem areas, they surely can not be surprised when people dump them on the ground without thinking twice.
One major issue is that as people will be no longer allowed to smoke inside many public places, as of next month, they will go outside to smoke. No bin=more rubbish on the floor.
I can see why councils do not want the streets overflowing with rubbish, but as far as I know, they are at least bio-degradable – the cotton filter, paper wrap and actual tobacco should break down. Compare that to plastic containers, shopping bags and glass bottles, and I do wonder if smokers really need to be concentrated on.
However, seeing piles of tarry butt ends is never a pleasant sight.
Oh and one obtuse group to blame for this issue? Terrorists… going back to the 80s, when the IRA bomb threat was an issue, councils removed many public bins, as a security measure! I still remember seeing those bins that were left with their openings taped up, and sewer manhole covers temporarily cemented into place, to prevent packages being stored and blown up.
March 1st, 2008 12:27 am
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