First assignment of group n° 054
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First description of our project[modifier | modifier le wikicode]
First description of our project's idea
FINDING A WAY TO AVOID THE CIGARETTE FILTERS WASTE
1. What Problem do you want to solve ?
Nowadays, It’s not uncommon to see the ground strewn with cigarette butts. Indeed, 4.5 trillion cigarette butts are thrown on the floor every year all around the world.
This looks scary knowing that cigarette filters are made of toxic and harmful products to the environment such as cellulose acetate. Above all, they are not biodegradable. Besides, filters are also full of carcinogens that are a big factor to take into account.
Thus, cigarette filters are the source of a huge problem regarding environment conservation, in a world that has to fight pollution.
It’s high time to implement a sustainable way to smoke in order to reduce pollution, and also to make smokers inhale less toxic products.
2. Why does this problem exist?
Cigarette littering has such a scope on the environment because smokers represent a significant part of the world population. Indeed, there are approximately 1 billion smokers in the world and for most of them, littering their cigarette butts once they have finished smoking is normal, and they don’t think it is a really noxious habit.
Even if biodegradable filters have been created, they weight a very few percentage of the total amount of filters used. Basic cigarette filters are 100 per cent non-biodegradables: A single cigarette can take more than 15 years to disintegrate naturally. During that time, toxic chemicals can seep out and pollute everything it surrounds.
Actually, smokers are not conscious enough of the harm. Most of the time, even if there are ashtrays around them, they throw their butts on the floor though. This highlights two points: · Society doesn’t pay enough attention to small toxic things: because it’s easy to overlook. People are usually concerned with more visible problems. · Cigarette litter does not cause immediate obvious social or environmental damage but it will have a long-term effect on the social and environmental background: It’s an invisible injury.
3. What breakthrough are you commited to creating?
We are committed to create a brand new cigarette filter that would tackle many problems :
- To reduce the street pollution (137 000 cigarette filters are thrown in the street every second in the world and it can take more than 15 years to disintegrate) - To reduce the environmental impact (40% of the waste in the mediterranean sea are cigarette filters, only one butt pollute 500 liters of clean water) - To protect the wildlife (birds and fishes eat cigarette filters)
It is also meaningful to change smokers behaviors and make them more aware regarding their current noxious impact on the environment.
The cigarette filter we are willing to create would be a re-usable filter, smokers would have to clean it after having smoked 10-15 times, and so there will not be cigarette litter at all because this filter could be used to infinity.
Potential experts already identified
Thomas Novotny: He is a professor of Global Health in the Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and an Adjunct Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Novotny’s current research focuses on the environmental impacts of tobacco use, the susceptibility to smoking initiation among young Chinese women, the interaction between tuberculosis and smoking, and health diplomacy.
Phone: (619) 594-3109
Email: tnovotny@mail.sdsu.edu
Likelihood : 6/10
Comité National Contre le Tabagisme: CNCT is the first association in France which makes a commitment and acts for the prevention and the protection of the people in front of misdeeds of tobacco and the practices of its industry.
Phone : 01 55 78 85 10
Email: cnct@cnct.fr
Likelihood : 8/10
Elli Slaughter: is an environmentalist who often works with Thomas Novotny.
Likelihood : 5/10
