How to vape greener.
It’s undeniable that smoking has negative impacts on both the environment and health. According to Keep Britain Tidy, 68% of littered items in England are smoking related, with approximately 4.5 trillion littered worldwide yearly. However, is vaping any better? Let’s look at sustainable vaping with the IBVTA.
The Environmental Impact Of Vaping
Batteries
Disposing of e-cig batteries incorrectly can harm the environment. Dispose of lithium and other metals in batteries responsibly. People throw away around 1.3 million disposables each week, causing harm to the environment. Also, throwing batteries into general household waste poses a significant fire risk.
Plastic
Around 14 million tonnes of plastic ends up in the ocean annually. Also, many pre-filled pods and disposables are not recyclable due to their nicotine content. The Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) limits pre-mixed e-liquids to 10ml, but purchasing shortfills can help reduce waste.
E-liquid
It’s not safe to dispose of e-liquid directly. Some users throw away e-liquid if they don’t like the flavour, but this can harm the environment because of the nicotine. The best way to dispose of unwanted e-liquid is to soak it up using an absorbent material like sawdust before throwing it away.
Vape Recycling
Disposables and batteries are recyclable, but you must take them to dedicated disposal centres. Totally Wicked and The Electronic Cigarette Company have partnered with a recycling company Veolia that specialises in safe battery disposal. Your batteries can be taken to any of our stores, which are then kept in fire safe bins until they come for collection.
What Does The IBVTA Recommend?
The IBVTA has brought to the government’s attention issues preventing sufficient recycling of single-use vapes. They need to address the lack of recycling for disposable vapes. Authorized importers do not follow waste regulations illegal importers are unlikely to follow product compliance schemes.
The IBVTA is suggests tightening up borders to prevent illegal vaping products from entering the country. Also, ensure that the costs of recycling vapes are distributed fairly.
The next issue raised is with illegal devices that Trading Standards seize. The IBVTA suggest that retailers who have devices confiscated should be made to pay the cost of their disposal.
And that concludes our look at sustainable vaping with the IBVTA. If you have any questions, why not contact us?
