Cigarette butts soon to be over in Paris? This is what the City of Paris wishes with the creation of the “Des rues sans mégots” measures launching this Saturday May 18, 2019. In every arrondissement hall, a bunch of measures are being set up in partnership with all the local associations involved in order to wipe out all year long these cigarette ends littering the capital’s sidewalks.
Following a Council of Paris debate back in February 2019, the Mairie de Paris has decided to create a cigarette butt-free street in all Parisian arrondissements. In concrete terms, actions to raise awareness about the impact cigarette buts have on the environment thanks to giving away pocket ashtrays are planned. So is the installation of new street bins including an ashtray. In the same time, with the support of the local associations, actions to raise awareness about tobacco addiction are encouraged. On the map below, you can spot the streets involved.
Today, the consequences of the growth of trash in the streets of Paris or other cities in France are tragic: one cigarette butt pollutes about 500 liters of water. It also spoils and damages the hygiene of the Parisian streets. Statistics are revealing: with 350 tons collected every year, the millions of cigarette butts collected by the cleaning services represent an exorbitant cost for the City of Paris.