As teenagers we are fully aware of the effects of vaping on our health and lifestyle. But how many of us look at the bigger picture and incorporate the impact of vaping on our environment? A lot of us might think that E-cigarettes or Vapes are a better alternative to smoking, and use that as an excuse to continue with our never ending nicotine addiction. However, this approach is vehemently incorrect. Alongside the adverse effects of E-cigarettes and vaping on our physical and mental health alike, using these also has a major and often overlooked impact on the environment accelerating the most dangerous global issue, climate change. 

Long before the birth of vaping, tobacco pollution had been at its peak and still is one of the most widespread forms of plastic pollution. Poorly discarded cigarette butts and smoke emitted have always posed a serious threat to human health, the environment and even wildlife. The e-cigarette or vape substantially grew in its popularity over the last 15 years. One in every five high school students was found to be vaping in 2020. Calling Vapes “an eco-friendly alternative to smoking cigarettes” merely due to the absence of discarding cigarette butts and Vapes being vapour-based is untrue and misleading. Keeping this in mind, we must consider the significant amount of toxic waste vaping generates which can be classified into not one, but three different types of wastes. 

1- Plastic waste. E-cigarettes are designed to be single-use products and therefore contain plastic cartridges. The rise in use of Vapes and their incorrect disposal may lead to the vape industry becoming the next major environmental crisis. 

2- Electronic waste. Similar to the wrongful disposal of cigarette butts, young people throw away their disposable Vapes carelessly without considering their disposal in proper waste facilities like those of smartphones. This careless disposal poses two issues, the presence of both circuit boards and lithium-ions. As the batteries degrade, their toxic compounds leach into the soil having a negative impact on the environment. Moreover, disposal in bins also presents a problem, causing explosions or fire risk in recycling facilities. 

3- Hazardous chemical waste. Nicotine is a substance listed by the US Environmental Protection Agency as an acute hazardous waste. Pods and e-liquids cannot be recycled with plastic waste as they have contained this hazardous chemical. Their disposal, hence, is required to be separate. 

Luckily, the issue of Vape waste is mainly preventable by prompt regulation and disseminating awareness on environment-friendly disposal of Vapes. Almost half (49.1%) of young people are not aware of what to do with used E-cigarettes and Vapes. 

Do’s and Don'ts of Vape disposal:

Do: 

• Take it along with your collected household e-waste. 

• Discard it in a hazardous waste facility. 

• Stop vaping altogether.