Green MSP Gillian Mackay backs the Record campaign highlighting how throwaway e-cigs have turned our streets into a dumping ground
Disposable vapes should be banned after Scotland’s streets became a plastic dumping ground, an MSP has demanded.
Mackay warned the single-use devices were turning up more and more on streets and in beach clean-ups - and claimed they could become “the cotton bud of their time”. Mackay - the Scottish Greens’ health spokeswoman - has also highlighted the public health unknowns around vaping, particularly for younger Scots. The MSP told The Record: “We have to look at a ban on disposable vapes.
Mackay said firms making and selling throwaway e-cigs had taken advantage of a “gap in the market”. She continued: “I don't know that environmental sustainability was top of the list [of concerns]. Unlike rechargeable brands, the brightly-coloured disposable gadgets come ready to go and last for around 600 puffs before needing to be thrown away and replaced. The devices usually come with a plastic or metal outer casing, and inside a lithium battery, heating coil, mixed plastic contraptions and a nicotine liquid-soaked sponge.
Barry Fisher, chief exec of Keep Scotland Beautiful, said Scotland was “currently experiencing a litter emergency”. He added: “Disposable vapes are a new and unnecessary contribution to the litter emergency in Scotland.Kim Pratt, circular economy campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “Disposable vapes need to be banned. The materials that single-use vapes are made of, like the lithium in their batteries, are extremely valuable.
Sheila Duffy, boss of smoking cessation charity ASH Scotland, said: “The huge upsurge of children across Scotland using disposable vapes is alarming as these products are not harmless. John Dunne, Director General of the UK Vaping Industry Association, said: “The huge positive benefit that vaping brings – and especially the many disposable entry-level devices on the market – is that they are a very effective way to help adult smokers quit.
The 26-year-old "vape crusader" has travelled up and down the country highlighting the problem and its growing scale. "And then every single day since - every single day since - I've been seeing them, finding them in the streets, in parks, in city centres, residential areas, finding them everywhere.” Ms Young, who moved to Dundee from Glasgow in October to pursue a PhD in climate science between Abertay and Dundee Unis, accused vape companies of failing to provide “good information” on how to recycle single-use items.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Cross-sectional associations of different types of nature exposure with psychotropic, antihypertensive and asthma medicationBackground Exposure to natural environments is thought to be beneficial for human health, but the evidence is inconsistent. Objective To examine whether exposure to green and blue spaces in urban environments is associated with mental and physical health in Finland. Methods The Helsinki Capital Region Environmental Health Survey was conducted in 2015−2016 in Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa in Finland (n=7321). Cross-sectional associations of the amounts of residential green and blue spaces within 1 km radius around the respondent’s home (based on the Urban Atlas 2012), green and blue views from home and green space visits with self-reported use of psychotropic (anxiolytics, hypnotics and antidepressants), antihypertensive and asthma medication were examined using logistic regression models. Indicators of health behaviour, traffic-related outdoor air pollution and noise and socioeconomic status (SES) were used as covariates, the last of these also as a potential effect modifier. Results Amounts of residential green and blue spaces or green and blue views from home were not associated with medications. However, the frequency of green space visits was associated with lower odds of using psychotropic medication (OR=0.67, 95% CI 0.55 to 0.82 for 3–4 times/week; 0.78, 0.63 to 0.96 for ≥5 times/week) and antihypertensive (0.64, 0.52 to 0.78; 0.59, 0.48 to 0.74, respectively) and asthma (0.74, 0.58 to 0.94; 0.76, 0.59 to 0.99, respectively) medication use. The observed associations were attenuated by body mass index, but no consistent interactions with SES indicators were observed. Conclusions Frequent green space visits, but not the amounts of residential green or blue spaces, or green and blue views from home, were associated with less frequent use of psychotropic, antihypertensive and asthma medication in urban environments. No data available based on General Data Protection Regulation.
Read more »
Labour MSP accuses Keir Starmer of 'undermining' Scots party over gender reformsEXCLUSIVE: Monica Lennon said the Labour leader's opposition to lowering the age at which someone can change gender was 'unhelpful' and disappointing
Read more »
MSP condemns anti-abortion protests in front of Glasgow hospitalsA Glasgow MSP has hit out at anti-abortion protestors, who gathered in from of two city hospitals today.
Read more »
16 Year Olds Are Old Enough To Decide Gender Change, Education Secretary Says16 year olds are old enough to decide gender change, education secretary says
Read more »
Rishi Sunak Slaps Down Gillian Keegan Over Whether 16-Year-Olds Can Change GenderDowning Street said the education secretary was expressing a 'personal view'.
Read more »
Will some teachers receive a 15.9% pay rise?Fact-checking claims by Education Secretary Gillian Keegan and teachers' union boss Mary Bousted.
Read more »