Cigarette butts are responsible for a huge amount of pollution in our city, local beaches and natural landscapes across the province. Residents in the False Bay area have decided to make sure these terrible pollutants don’t harm their beaches anymore.
In a pioneering move, the local environmental movement spearheaded by Clovelly Eco Group that brought the province more sustainable dog waste bins is also bringing a eco-friendly solution to smokers polluting our beaches.
The group is now experiencing a transition and will be changed to False Bay Eco Group as they plan to roll out a number of PVC pipes with perfect sized holes for depositing cigarette butts on a series of beaches in the area.
These pipes will offer smokers an alternative option to discarding their cigarettes in the sand or even in other available bins that could cause fires.
The community came together to source the pipes needed for the project and they have successfully collected enough to fully supply both Glencairn, Fish Hoek and Clovelly beach.
“Thank you so much for the amazing effort and the community pulling together for pipes for our beautiful beaches. We have enough now for Glencairn and Clovelly beach,” said the group on their Facebook page.
While the project is in full swing and could soon feature at other beaches in the False Bay area, there are still a few things needed.
“Needed currently is a bit of paint to paint the butt stops as well as duct tape. Some neat writing on the side.. Was thinking white paint and then a filter.. We can even make them different colors or stick to yellow,” added the group.
A community member is generously sorting out the pipes and helping drill holes, but eager residents who want to contribute are being encouraged to have their say on the Facebook page.
If you would like to contribute further you can visit their Facebook page for more information and even join them this Sunday at the beaches to help install all the pipes.
Cigarette butts may be a destructive menace to our natural landscapes but a group of dedicated residents is all its takes to make a difference.
Picture: Facebook