[Even cigarette butts can impact environment and health: preliminary considerations]

In Italy, every year about 72 billion of cigarette butts are thrown away in the environment. Cigarette butts represent 50% of the wastes of urban areas (parks, roads) in the world, and 40% of Mediterranean Sea wastes. In particular, total polluting load is constituted of 1,872 Bq millions of Polonium-210, assuming 75 mBq per cigarette butt, and 1,800 tons of volatile organic compounds. As a matter of fact, according to several surveys, cigarette butts are considered by smokers and non-smokers as a common and acceptable waste in the environment. In 2008, European Union issued a Directive on wastes considering the «extended producer responsibility» (i.e., every industry is liable for costs of collection, transport and disposal of its own products). In October 2012, the Italian Parliament proposed a bill that classifies cigarette butts as special wastes in the frame of this responsibility. It could be interesting in the future to follow the legislative process of that bill in the Italian Parliament in order to show how strong it will be supported.