Frustrated pedestrian calls out fellow citizens for creating public hazard: 'Some people just don't care about future generations'

A pedestrian was shocked to see the amount of cigarette littering in the streets of the Canary Islands. 

The original poster shared a video of the ground covered in cigarette butts, expressing their frustration. 

Does anyone care?
byu/GoodOlBluesBrother incanarias

"I've never seen so much cigarette trash," they wrote.

However, the staggering amount of cigarette trash wasn't the only problem the OP highlighted. They also addressed the lack of initiative and care by local businesses and residents to maintain the area. 

"Why is there no pressure on restaurants and hotels to provide ashtrays for people to use?" asked the OP. "Why are the bus stops so poorly provided for for smokers? Why are so few beaches invested in stopping cigarettes being left in the sand?"

Littering is a global crisis, and unfortunately, cigarette butts are a significant part of the problem. In fact, EarthDay.org reported that 4.5 trillion cigarette butts pollute the environment, making them the "most abundant form of plastic waste in the world."

While it's a common misconception that cigarette butts are made of cotton or paper, that is not the case. As a result, cigarette butts can take up to 10 years to break down. As they do break down, cigarette butts leach toxic chemicals into the environment that contaminate and remain in the soil forever. 

Redditors were also outraged by the blatant littering and lack of respect for the environment. 

"Some people just don't care about future generations," responded one user. 

In this case, the solution is simple. Instead of tossing your trash on the ground, simply throw it into the trash bin. 

Do you think America has a plastic waste problem? Definitely 👍 Only in some areas 🫤 Not really 👎 I'm not sure 🤷 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

Redditors also discussed the problem of smoking in general and the health consequences associated with the habit. 

"I remember the first time I moved to spain and how shocked i was with the amount of cigarette butts i saw littered everywhere," wrote one user. "... I couldn't get my head around why you'd smoke with the sun beaming down on an unbearable summer day."

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