Don’t LITTER with your FILTER

The most awaited summer season has finally hit our islands in full force. We have all been looking forward to start spending days at the beach following the cold winter season. The Maltese public is considered to be very lucky to be surrounded by many bea

During our numerous beach visits, one cannot avoid to ignore the waste found littering our beaches which undoubtedly will end up in our seas, therefore, impacting both land and marine species. In view of this, the Ministry for the Environment, Energy, and Enterprise has launched the fourth edition of the Saving our Blue campaign relating to the importance of reducing singleuse plastics in order to safeguard our marine environment. As part of the campaign, various beach clean-ups are organized and different types of waste are found on beaches including plastic caps, jablo containers, cutlery, and the infamous cigarette butts.

Amongst the various initiatives of the campaign, a national survey was conducted during the year 2021. From all the persons surveyed, 98% are aware that littering is a public offence in Malta. Additionally, the survey has also shown that 15% of smokers admit that although they are aware of the negative impacts that littering with their cigarette butts left on the environment, unfortunately, they still litter with their filter.

It is worth noting that between the years 2019 - 2021 one of the most common waste found on the beaches is cigarette butts. In fact, the amount of cigarette butts collected has reached almost 36 kilos and when considering that one cigarette butt is light in weight, the amount collected is quite substantial.

In this regard, the Ministry for the Environment, Energy, and Enterprise has taken the initiative to launch this pilot project through the installation of forty containers called ballot bins on sandy beaches around Malta and Gozo having twenty-five containers in Malta and fifteen containers in Gozo. The purpose of these ballot bins is to encourage all smokers to avoid throwing their cigarette butts in the sand and opt to utilize these ballot bins. Moreover, the ballot bins offer the interactivity to dispose of their cigarette butt correctly by replying to the question being asked on the ballot bin unit itself thus making this environmentally correct action more intriguing to the individual.

Through this initiative, the general public is urged to take the necessary action to start disposing of cigarette butts in these ballot bins whilst at the beach which leads to the reduction of sand contamination as well as reducing the damage done to our marine species within our marine environment. It is also worth mentioning that cigarette butts take years to disintegrate and disappear off the face of the earth. Even more so, through this individual action, we will be participating to reduce the dangers that these cigarette butts could cause to the public, especially to our young children whilst playing at the beach.

The installation of these containers continues to build on the work being carried out by the Ministry of the Environment, Energy, and Enterprise in the past years and months where the ban on various single-use plastic products was imposed at local selling points earlier this year.

For more information on the Saving Our Blue campaign as well as to stay informed on new initiatives being launched one can visit either the social media platforms on Facebook and Instagram as well as visit the official site https://savingourblue.gov.mt/