We’ve all seen the pictures. Horrifying heaps of plastic straws washed up on once pristine beaches. And the heartbreaking sea turtle video... This media coverage finally spurred cities like Seattle and San Francisco to make a change, banning single-use plastic straws and utensils earlier this year. But did you know that plastic straws aren’t the most destructive thing we are doing to our oceans?  

In a recent article, Global News revealed that cigarette butts are the worst perpetrator of ocean pollution — eviler even than plastic straws. A majority of cigarette filters are composed of miniscule plastic particles that take up to 12 years to decompose. And they don’t just passively decompose either. Over the course of 12 long years, a cigarette releases its 7000+ toxic chemicals into the environment. Hydrogen cyanide, ammonia, acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, benzene, phenols, pyridines and arsenic (to name a few), slowly but surely find their way into the earth, our drains, our water and, ultimately, our oceans.  

Not good. These acutely toxic chemicals damage habitats and poison marine life, not to mention cost communities tax dollars for cleanup and disposal. And yet, the practice of flicking cigarettes is one of the most widely accepted and least disputed forms of litter on the planet. According to the Cigarette Butt Pollution Project, two-thirds of the 5.6 trillion cigarettes made with these types of filters every year are carelessly tossed on the ground, in gutters, on beaches, in parks, or wherever a smoker happens to be. That’s 3,073,332,960,000 cigarettes a year polluting our planet. That’s 1.69 billion pounds of toxic trash leaching into our environment.  

So, the best thing you can do for the planet this year? Sure, composting is great. Upgrading to energy efficient appliances can help. Taking transit, riding your bike, shunning bottled water... These are all great and green things to do. But the best thing you can do is quit smoking.  

Vaping can help. By switching to vaping, you can still get your nicotine fix, but you won’t be causing nearly as much harm to the environment. Vapor doesn’t pollute the air like cigarette smoke does, and each bottle of juice is good for about a week — that’s the equivalent of a carton of cigarettes! E-cig cartomizers and batteries can be recycled and reused, and getting your vape juice doesn’t involve cutting down millions of trees every year as is the custom of Big Tobacco.  

At VanGo, we care about our communities, our environment and being responsible citizens, and we strongly support this message! Lose the cancer sticks. Try vaping instead.  

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