Bill Proposes Cigarette Butt Recycling Program In New York

New York City’s Assemblymember, Michael DenDekker, has proposed a bill for a statewide cigarette recycling program. DenDekker got the idea of this recycling program from a constituent, after which he studied and found out that cigarette butts can indeed be recycled for several uses such as creating a solution that keeps steel pipes from eroding, making sealants and glues out of them and even turning them into fabric. Currently, over 176 million pounds of cigarette butts are discarded in the US annually, which end up on the ground or in a landfill and spread their toxins into the water table.

DenDekker also proposed a minimum one-cent deposit per cigarette from smokers to fund the recycling program, which may be developed by the departments of Environmental Conservation and Health. If passed, it would be the first recycling initiative of its kind in America.

Michael DenDekker

[via Inhabitat]