The City of Vancouver launched a new pilot program called “The Cigarette Waste Brigade” to recycle cigarette waste (i.e. cigarette butts). It is the first cigarette waste recycling program in the world. The program launched in November 2013 with the installation of 110 new cigarette recycling receptacles in downtown Vancouver. The goal of the program is to help keep Vancouver free of cigarette waste, which according the program’s sponsor, “is the most littered item across the globe”.

The City’s website says that contrary to popular belief, cigarette filters are not biodegradable. Filters are made from cellulose acetate, a synthetic fiber that has numerous industrial uses. The program’s sponsor will take the cellulose acetate and turn it into building materials such as planks and shipping pallets.  Not only will the program create a useful product from a seemingly useless waste, but it will also create new jobs and keep a potentially harmful waste from poisoning essential links in the aquatic food chain.

This program illustrates the importance of continuing to evaluate and redefine our definition of what is “waste”.  Just because a product or item is no longer useful to us, does not mean it’s reached the end of a useful life. Smith Management Group helps companies re-evaluate their “waste” and find more useful alternatives than sending waste to a landfill.

Sources:

http://vancouver.ca/news-calendar/cigarette-butt-collection-and-recycling.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulose_acetate

http://inhabitat.com/vancouver-launches-the-worlds-first-cigarette-butt-recycling-program/