Marine pollution from tobacco industry estimated at US$26 billion per year

A study published in Tobacco Control estimated the overall cost of marine pollution caused by plastic waste from cigarettes. Although lower than the health and human costs of smoking, this cost could be passed on to tobacco companies as damages caused.

Made of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic, cigarette filters are the most common waste in the world. They also represent a form of avoidable pollution, since it has been shown that they do not protect health and are only there to ensure better acceptance of cigarettes by smokers, especially women and young people.

Most often ending up in the oceans, this plastic waste is one of the many environmental damages committed by the tobacco industry. A Filipino researcher has attempted to assess this damage, which would make it possible to demand possible compensation from tobacco manufacturers.[1].

Methodology for estimating the cost of plastic waste

The researcher relied on available data on the environmental cost of pollution. She based her research on World Bank publications on waste management costs, on data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on the cost of plastic waste, and on estimates from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on the impact of a tonne of plastic on marine ecosystems. Tobacco consumption data came from the Tobacco Atlas edited by Vital Strategies. The weight of a cigarette filter was estimated at 3.4 grams. The plastic film surrounding the packs of 20 cigarettes, weighing 19 grams, was added to the mass of plastic waste from cigarettes.

When cross-referenced, this information allowed us to establish a potential annual cost of US$26 billion (€23.9 billion) for plastic waste from cigarettes. This cost would be broken down into US$20.7 billion (€19.4 billion) in losses to marine ecosystems and US$5 billion (€4.6 billion) in waste management costs borne by governments. Over ten years, this cumulative cost would amount to US$186 billion, taking into account inflation. The greater cost to ecosystems is due to the persistence of emissions during the degradation of cigarette filters, estimated at around ten years. The countries generating the most cigarette butts (China, Indonesia, Japan, Bangladesh, the Philippines) are those that bear the greatest costs, most of them being low- and middle-income countries.

An estimate that does not include the toxicity of cigarette butts

The author admits that these estimates are probably lower than the real cost of cigarette waste. While it is highly detrimental to marine ecosystems, the very persistent toxicity of cigarette butts has not been taken into account, with attention focused only on plastic waste. The costs of cleaning up tobacco waste are also higher than those of other waste, due to this toxicity, its small size and its very large number. More detailed field studies would allow for a better consideration of all the costs generated by cigarette butts and packaging.

The author also points out that this cost to the marine environment seems almost insignificant compared to the 1,400 billion US dollars (1,288 billion euros) of economic costs attributable to smoking. However, she believes that estimating this environmental cost is essential to consider demanding financial compensation from tobacco manufacturers. This compensation could take the form of a fee or tax on cigarette packets, which would contribute to increasing the price of tobacco and act as a deterrent to smokers.

To reduce pollution from plastic waste from filters, another measure, currently under discussion at the international level, would be to eliminate them. This is what 130 environmental and health organizations grouped together in the Stop Tobacco Pollution Alliance (STPA) are demanding as part of the development of an international treaty against plastic pollution.

To learn more about the issue of filters, see our decryption.

Keywords: plastic waste, cigarettes, filter, marine ecosystems, costs

M.F.

[1] Yes DK, Tobacco industry accountability for marine pollution: country and global estimates, Tobacco Control, Published Online First: 28 November 2023. doi: 10.1136/tc-2022-057795