Matt Georg E, Greiner Lydia, Tran Kristina, Gibbons Joseph, Vingiello Michael, Stigler Granados Paula, Shadbegian Ronald, Novotny Thomas E
Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California, United States of America.
Center for Tobacco and the Environment, San Diego State University, San Diego, California, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2025 Jan 6;20(1):e0313241. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0313241. eCollection 2025.
We investigated the amount and distribution of waste generated by commercial tobacco, electronic cigarette, and cannabis (TEC) use to inform policy options aimed at mitigating the environmental harm caused by these products. Using disproportionate stratified random sampling, we selected 60 census blocks from the eight largest cities in San Diego County, California. We twice surveyed publicly accessible areas in these blocks to quantify TEC waste accumulation and its re-accumulation. All collected items were photographed, classified, geocoded, counted, and properly discarded. We identified demographic, land use, and behavioral data from public sources and direct observations. We modeled total cigarette butt quantities for all census blocks across the eight cities and found similar results for Round 1 (8.63 million) and Round 2 (8.66 million) collections. Single-use plastic cigarette filters were the primary contributor to TEC waste (94%). Total TEC waste counts and cigarette butt counts showed strong linear associations (r = +0.86 and r = +0.91). The area surveyed, land use category, resident demographics, smoking prevalence, and walkability explained 78% of the variance in cigarette butt count. The interval between Round 1 and 2 counts did not affect re-accumulation counts, suggesting that baseline TEC waste levels were re-established within 1-2 months after cleanup. Annually, we estimate up to 200 million cellulose acetate plastic filters may be discarded in public areas of the eight cities. Given the continuous deposition, vast quantity, heterogeneous distribution, and rapid re-accumulation of TEC waste after cleanup, increasing removal efforts alone are financially untenable and impractical downstream solutions for TEC waste. Community-wide policies (e.g., filter bans, outdoor smoking restrictions) and individual behavior changes (e.g., reduced smoking rates, proper disposal of cigarette butts) are necessary to effectively mitigate the environmental impact of TEC waste in urban settings.
我们调查了商业烟草、电子烟和大麻（TEC）使用所产生废弃物的数量和分布情况，以为旨在减轻这些产品所造成环境危害的政策选项提供依据。我们采用不成比例分层随机抽样方法，从加利福尼亚州圣地亚哥县的八个最大城市中选取了60个人口普查街区。我们对这些街区中可公开进入的区域进行了两次调查，以量化TEC废弃物的累积及其再次累积情况。所有收集到的物品都进行了拍照、分类、地理编码、计数并妥善处理。我们从公共来源和直接观察中确定了人口统计、土地利用和行为数据。我们对八个城市所有普查街区的烟头总量进行了建模，发现第一轮（863万个）和第二轮（866万个）收集的结果相似。一次性塑料烟嘴是TEC废弃物的主要来源（94%）。TEC废弃物总数和烟头计数显示出很强的线性关联（r = +0.86和r = +0.91）。调查区域、土地利用类别、居民人口统计、吸烟率和步行便利性解释了烟头计数差异的78%。第一轮和第二轮计数之间的间隔并未影响再次累积计数，这表明清理后1至2个月内TEC废弃物的基线水平得以重新确立。我们估计，八个城市的公共区域每年可能会丢弃多达2亿个醋酸纤维素塑料烟嘴。鉴于TEC废弃物在清理后持续沉积、数量巨大、分布不均且迅速再次累积，仅增加清除工作在经济上是不可行的，且对于TEC废弃物来说是不切实际的下游解决方案。全社区范围的政策（如烟嘴禁令、户外吸烟限制）和个人行为改变（如降低吸烟率、正确处理烟头）对于有效减轻城市环境中TEC废弃物的环境影响是必要的。
