Tobacco Education Program of Napa County

Toxic Litter Initiative

Jim Tennant___________________________

At Large Member__________________

Napa County Tobacco

Advisory Board

Manuel Cordero____________________

Tobacco Education Specialist_______________________

Napa County Tobacco

Education Program

Peggy Klick____________________________

Program Director_______________________

is out of town.

Cigarette butts are deadly. The acetate (plastic) filters take many years to decompose and are

specifically designed to accumulate toxins.

Each cigarette butt can contain up to 60 known human carcinogens including arsenic,

formaldehyde, chromium and lead.

They can be eaten by young children or wildlife.They can travel through storm drains and end up

in our waterways.They cause fires if not completely extinguished.

Cigarette litter represents over 20% of all litter collected in many community cleanup initiatives.

There are over 176 million pounds of cigarette butts discarded in the United States each year.

This is equal 44,000 cars lined up bumper to bumper for 167 miles.

Each year cigarette butts are the number one item picked up during the California Coastal and

Intercoastal Cleanup Day.

In 2005, more than 250,000 cigarette butts (35 percent of the litter collected) were picked up in

one day from California's creeks, rivers, bays and beaches.

• Earth Day Riverside Park Cleanup • We worked with Friends of the Napa River• From just Riverside Park, which had been

cleaned up only 6 months earlier, we collected 1431 cigarette butts.

And each one can contain up to 60 known human carcinogens.

Associations Contacted Requesting Support of the Toxic Litter InitiativeConnolly Ranch Napa County Stormwater Management Program

The Land Trust of Napa County Napa Sanitation District

Napa Solano Audubon Society Acorn Soupe

Napa County Sierra Club Ag in the Classroom    

Friends of the Napa River California Conservation Corps

Napa County Resource Conservation District Carolyn Parr Nature Center Commission

Earth Defense for the Environment Now (EDEN) City of Napa Recycling Division 

Skyline Park Citizens Association The Watershed Project

Sustainable Napa Valley Napa County Wildlife Conservation

California Native Plant Society, Napa Chapter Napa Valley Museum

City of Napa Water Division City of Napa Parks and Recreation

As part of the Smoke-Free Parks initiative, the Tobacco Advisory Board conducted a public opinion survey to determine the level of support for the passage of an outdoor no smoking policy.

The survey was conducted at various locations in the City of Napa.We received a total of 575 responses.

The survey respondents were:54% female, 46% male

75% residents of the City of Napa, an additional 15% residents Napa County and 10% from outside Napa County15% current smokers, 32% former smokers and 53% never smoked

The survey results were:91% feel that tobacco litter in public parks is harmful to the environment

82% feel that tobacco use in public parks is harmful to their health or the health of their family

AND77% would support a smoke-

free policy in Napa’s public parks!

• Smoke-Free Parks is not a radical, ground-breaking, new concept.

• As of November, 2007 a total of 18 California counties, including 4 Bay Area counties, and a total of 139 California cities, including 37 Bay Area cities, have restrictions or bans on smoking in public places, almost all including smoke-free parks.

• These jurisdictions include the cities of Healdsburg, Sonoma, Vacaville and Santa Rosa and the counties of Marin, San Mateo, Alameda and San Francisco.

The Napa County Tobacco Advisory Board requests that the Napa Parks & Recreation Commission recommend a

Smoke-Free Parks ordinance to the Napa City Council.

Questions?

Thank you for your time and attention.