Cigarette butts are continually one of the top items collected on Clean Your Streams Day. Whether you smoke cigarettes or not, this should concern you. Cigarettes are detrimental to environmental health for the same reasons they are to human health. Contrary to popular belief, cigarettes are not biodegradable! 95% of cigarette filters are made of cellulose acetate, a plastic that is slow to degrade and persists in the environment for over 400 years. Unfortunately, filters are often consumed by wildlife, mistaking the filters for food. Cigarette chemicals can also leach into water and contaminate it. One cigarette butt leaching chemicals into 2 gallons of water is enough to contaminate it and negatively impact marine species. Please properly dispose of cigarette butts in trash cans, ashtrays, or specific bins for butts! Our wildlife, communities, and waterways will appreciate it!