Following up on Dr. Bianco's post on cigarette filters - https://www.hifa.org/dgroups-rss/smoking-1-article-cigarette-filters-and... . We all know that climate change and environmental degradation have profound health implications. Bold collective action is vital if we want to avoid health calamities on a huge scale. Cigarette filters may seem like a small thing, but 4.5 trillion are littered into the environment annually; they are the biggest single source of plastic pollution. Given that cigarette filters serve no health purpose, are non-biodegradable, are toxic, and are attached to the world's leading cause of preventable death, they are the lowest hanging fruit at the UN plastic pollution negotiations. If we as a global society can't get rid of cigarette filters, what chance do we have to address other plastics that actually serve a purpose?
Please, if you collaborate with your government on health, make sure they know about this treaty process. Most governments are siloed, so it is only ministries of foreign affairs and environment that are represented at the plastics talks. We need health experts there, too. The next negotiation starts May 22, in Paris.
Chris Bostic, Policy Director
ASH > ACTION ON SMOKING & HEALTH
Dedicated to ZERO Tobacco Deaths.
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HIFA profile: Chris Bostic is Action on Smoking and Health’s Policy Director. Since 2001, Chris has worked in tobacco policy at the local, state, national and international levels. Prior to joining ASH, he worked at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and the American Lung Association. He has also served as a public health law clinical instructor at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law and was a founding board member of the Human Rights and Tobacco Control Network (HRTCN). bosticc at ash.org
