Cigarette filters, commonly referred to as “cigarette butts,” are harmful plastic waste. Every year, trillions of cigarette butts are dumped into the environment, where they dissolve and release toxic metals and nicotine before becoming microplastic pollution. Recently, a group of environmental activists made an effort to do something novel to draw attention to the serious issue of this specific pollution.
Climate activists gathered 650,000 cigarette butts and piled them up in the heart of Portugal’s capital, Lisbon, on Sunday to raise awareness about the often-overlooked form of pollution. They collected enough stubs to fill 40 plastic buckets, then heaped them into a mound for the German climate campaigner behind the stunt to climb on.
Andreas Noe wore a breathing apparatus to protect him from the toxins in the non-biodegradable butts.