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Research suggests that billions of cigarette butts are thrown away each year posing a risk to plant growth.
One study found that the presence of cigarette butts in the soil reduced the success of sprouting and the length of clover shoots by 27% and 28% respectively.
Published in the journal Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, the results also showed that root weight was reduced by 57%.
For the grbad, germination success was reduced by 10% and shoot length by 13%, said the team led by academics from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU).
Most cigarette butts contain a cellulose acetate fiber filter, a type of bioplastic.
But non-smoked cigarette filters have almost the same effect on plant growth as spent filters, indicating that plant damage is caused by the filter itself, even without the extra toxins released by burning tobacco.
It is estimated that about 4.5 billion cigarette butts are discarded each year, making it the most widespread form of plastic pollution on the planet.
As part of this study, academics sampled locations around the city of Cambridge and found areas containing up to 128 cigarette butts per square meter.
The control experiments contained pieces of wood of similar shape and size to those of cigarette butts.
Lead author, Dr. Dannielle Green, Lecturer in Biology at the ARU, said: "Although this is a common sight that strews streets and parks around the world, our study is the first to show the impact of cigarette butts on plants.
"We found that they had a detrimental effect on the germination success and the length of the grbad and clover shoots and that they more than halved the weight of the clover roots.
"Ryegrbad and white clover, the two species we tested, are important feed crops for livestock and are common in urban green spaces.
"These plants are home to a wealth of biodiversity, even in urban parks, and white clover is environmentally important to pollinators and nitrogen fixation.
She added that filters can take years or even decades to break down.
"Abandoning cigarette butts seems like a socially acceptable form of trash and we need to educate the public that filters do not go away and can cause serious environmental damage," said Dr. Green.
Dr. Bas Boots, co-author, added: "Although additional work is needed, we believe that it is the chemical composition of the filter that causes damage to the plants.
"Most are made from cellulose acetate fibers, and added chemicals that make plastics more flexible, called plasticizers, can also be leached and adversely affect the early stages of plant development."
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