Why we need to act fast on vapes

By Surfrider intern Sidonie Fichot, visiting from University Sciences Po Rennes, France

Last month my article was about cigarette butts, and now I would like to share some information about vapes and e-cigarettes and why we need to act fast and demand regulation. Presently, conservative estimates suggest that Australians are landfilling at least one million disposable vapes per month and this poses a huge problem as they contain tiny batteries, circuitry, toxic chemicals in the form of e-liquids, metal, and single-use plastic.

Vapes and e-cigarettes are are electronic devices used to heat vaping products for inhalation.

Cheap and inexpensive vapes are becoming increasingly popular with approximately 1.2 million Australians, and the alarming trend is that this figure is growing with young people. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 21.7% of 18-24 year old people have vaped in their lifetime. Vapes are regulated in New South Wales, and it is prohibited to use an e-cigarette in areas where smoking is banned.

Some vapes are designed to be reused, however single-use vapes are designed to be disposable, and presently there is no facility to recycle them. Recycling is problematic because the components of disposable and single-use vapes are glued together and contain a tiny lithium (Li-ion) battery which is one third the size of a mobile phone battery. This tiny battery is flammable and we should be concerned about how they can best be disposed of.

In Australia, the recycling of vapes is non-existent as we haven’t yet found a successful way to deal with vapes once they have been used, however, technologies do exist, as in the UK some single-use vapes are able to be recycled.

Until policy and regulations catch up with the growing popularity of vapes and e-cigarettes in Australia, we must decide how to proceed as these disposable vapes and their toxic batteries are going directly into landfill.

In Victoria it is illegal to landfill an e-cigarette but as there are no options to recycle, where else do you put them? In Western Australia, vapes have exploded in garbage trucks and there have been instances where vapes have set garbage bins on fire. Vapes and e-cigarettes have the potential to do extensive damage and this is concerning as we are a country that has a history of bushfires, so we must push our politicians to act and pass policies that ensure correct disposal.

For more information please visit the No More Butts website