Litter is one of the most annoying things to encounter while out for a nice walk. Unfortunately, people find trash on trails, in parks, and nearly everywhere. One woman took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to lament the scourge of disposable vapes.
Laura Young (@LessWasteLaura) is a Climate PhD researcher who was named the Scottish Influencer of the Year in 2024. In a 2022 post on X, she lamented finding multiple vapes while out on a walk.
I'm sick of litter picking these vapes (and now prying them out my dogs mouth from finding at the park). I want to campaign against these. They shouldn't be "disposable". Precious metals and harmful contents (not even beginning to mention health impacts). Who's with me? pic.twitter.com/SyJY4ZQqyE
— Laura Young (@LessWasteLaura) September 15, 2022
The post read, "I'm sick of litter picking these vapes (and now prying them out my dogs mouth from finding at the park). I want to campaign against these. They shouldn't be 'disposable'. Precious metals and harmful contents (not even beginning to mention health impacts). Who's with me?"
This post helped her start the #BanDisposableVapes campaign, urging people not to use these products and aiming to get legislation passed. If you check the hashtag, you can see tons of photos of the vapes people have collected. In exciting news, due in part to her efforts, the United Kingdom decided in early 2024 to work towards banning disposable vapes, as reported by The Telegraph.
There are many reasons why single-use vapes should be banned. As Young detailed in her post, these vapes contain valuable resources that are mined in incredibly unethical ways. Plus, many of these metals could be recycled and reused for other technology.
Sky News reported, "The number of discarded disposable vapes accounts for around 10 tonnes [11 tons] of lithium being sent to landfill or waste incinerators each year - enough of the metal to make batteries for 1,200 electric cars."
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Not only are littered vapes unsightly, but they can cause flat tires, and as Young also pointed out, pets and other wildlife can get ahold of them, leading to potential harm.
An additional facet of concern is their negative health effects and appeal to youth. While cigarettes have fallen out of favor for good reasons, vapes have taken their place. The CDC says that vapes are the most used tobacco product among youths, and many still contain the highly addictive ingredient nicotine.
Folks online agreed with Young about the annoyance of finding vapes discarded on the sides of roads and trails.
One person responded, asking, "Is there a petition to sign?...People pressure and effort resulted in CFCs, micro plastics and single use cups etc being banned/phased out and these are just as bad, never mind health impacts."
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"Fully reusable lithium battery designed to be thrown away, it's criminal!" another wrote.
Yet another replied with photos of their own vape finds, saying, "Agree. I've got a collection going on."
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