A pain in the butt
22 Aug 2007
With the aim of combatting increasing levels of cigarette litter the Business Design Centre has invested in Ashcan, a unique portable cylinder-shaped ashtray that takes up the space of exactly one cigarette in a pack. They are to be distributed to all employees, tenants and visitors to the BDC that require them.
The introduction of the smoking ban has affected venues nationwide. Although the BDC became smoke-free in 2005 the venue has identified that this ban will effect not only smokers working within or visiting the BDC but also the local environment, with cigarette litter set to dramatically increase.
Dominic Jones, Chief Executive, BDC, says “While we are not encouraging people to smoke we must be realistic. I believe the distribution of Ashcans will offer responsible smokers a simple way to extinguish and dispose of their cigarettes. We have a very close relationship with Islington Council and looking after our local environment has always been very important to us, this is just one way in which we are trying to help.”
Ashcan was invented by Alastair McNeill, a young designer who had previously exhibited at New Designers, a graduate design event held at the BDC. Alistair died in January 2007. His wife Lucy, a former Event Director at Upper Street Events, the organising arm of the BDC, is now running the business. It is already being retailed in Tesco stores nationwide, with endorsement from Keep Britain Tidy.
Ashcan is airtight, so it both extinguishes a lit cigarette and traps the odour inside, ready to be disposed of easily. Lucy states “Ashcan is a simple but incredibly effective solution to the growing problem of cigarette litter. The BDC is once again leading by example by investing in the product I hope other businesses see fit to follow suit.”
Some key environmental facts about cigarette litter:
- 40% of litter in the uk is smoking related
- Everyday UK smokers throw away about 200 million butts
- It can take between 18 months and 500 years for a stub to decompose
- Cigarette butts are flushed into waterways in huge quantities and are harmful to birds and marine life
(Source – ENCAMS)
