KAB of NHC receives Cigarette Litter Prevention Program grant from Keep America Beautiful, Inc. 

  The most commonly littered items in the world are those that fall easily from human hands.  Thousands of cigarette butts fall onto the streets of downtown Wilmington each year, and taxpayers spend about $30,000 per year cleaning up the butts from downtown streets alone. Volunteers and business owners spend many more hours cleaning up the carelessly discarded butts.  They believe that our downtown should be kept clean and they do their part to ensure it remains a viable area for tourists, residents, and business owners.

      Wilmington Downtown, Inc., the City of Wilmington and Keep America Beautiful of New Hanover County continue their efforts to decrease the amount of cigarette litter that fouls our historic riverfront.  A grant from Keep America Beautiful, Inc., as a part of a larger program funded by Philip Morris, provided funds to purchase new and sturdier ash receptacles on Front and Grace Streets in downtown. These receptacles, designed by City staff and manufactured locally by Metro Cigarette Disposal, were installed and maintained by the City of Wilmington.  Metro has donated 2 additional receptacles in support of this initiative.  Wilmington Downtown, Inc. distributed pocket ashtrays provided through the grant program at their popular weekly Downtown Sundown concerts, and sent out posters and coasters to local businesses. 

 Cigarette litter scans were conducted before and after the new ash receptacles were installed. The result?  A 44% reduction in cigarette butts on our sidewalks and in our gutters.  

Ray Worrell, owner of Slice of Life and longtime supporter of cigarette litter prevention programs, notes that the City of Wilmington has stepped up to the plate to keep downtown clean in the past couple of years.  ABOARD, the area bar and restaurant association, also conducts cleanups downtown throughout the year.  According to Worrell, the talk after the cleanups always includes amazement at the number of cigarette butts that are found.   Thousands of butts dirty our downtown streets, and business owners know that the customers’ first perception of cleanliness of a restaurant, or a downtown, will influence their decision to come back.

      Providing ash receptacles and pocket ashtrays is just a part of addressing the problem.  The proper receptacles need to be provided, but the onus for preventing this pollution problem and taxpayer burden lies on the litterers themselves.  The upcoming ban on smoking in bars and restaurants will result in a large increase in litter if this problem isn’t recognized and addressed now. 

    Cigarette butts are litter.  They cost taxpayers money, pollute our waterways, harm our wildlife and take away from the beauty of our area.  Do your part.  Don’t litter anything; not cigarette butts, not anything.  Do it for your community, do it for your tax bill, or do it to avoid a $100 fine.