Check it out!!!  House passes cigarette litter law!

The Butt Hunt Continues!

The Hunt was nearly a year ago...but the mission continues!  Leadership Portland grad Sara Fritsch read this article and was motivated to help Deb pass her bill (House Bill 2676) down in Salem.  On April 14, 2009 Sara and Deb testified before the Environment and Water Committee at the statehouse in Salem.  Their testimony was well received.  Stay tuned for updates as the Bill moves along...

How was the Portland Butt Hunt?

THANK YOU TO ALL of our fabulous volunteers (all 50+ of you!!!).  Together we collected approximately 25,000 butts in two hours!  AMAZING.  We were also able to spread the word around town.  The hunt was a huge success.  THANK YOU!

Be sure to check out the pictures online.  Also, please send us any pictures that you may have. 

Also check out the good press we got! 

What is the Portland Butt Hunt?

On Saturday April 19, the Leadership Portland class of 2008 invites you to join us in the first Portland Butt Hunt.  We have partnered with SOLV to incorporate the Butt Hunt into their annual SOLV IT Earth Day initiative - one of the largest Earth Day projects in the nation.  Our objective will be to clean up the butts around downtown Portland.  Mark your calendars, sign up, and join us for the hunt!

We encourage smokers and non-smokers to join the butt hunt.  This is not an anti-smoking initiative, it is an anti-litter initiative.  It is important to have smokers on our team. 

Some ButtHunt details: We will meet at Pioneer Square (by Starbucks) at 9am on 4/19.  Gloves and garbage bags will be provided.  Suggested routes will be coordinated and assigned.

More information about SOLV IT

More information about Leadership Portland

Why are butts bad?

Some General Butt Stats:

• Globally, over 2 billion butts are littered per day ; butts are the most littered item in the US and in the world
• Cigarette butts are not biodegradable, they are made of plastic cellulose acetate and under ideal conditions they can still take up to 12 years to break down
• Poisons in butts can kill small animals
• Butts = litter, litter = wrong & illegal , litter harms people, animals, environment and economy
• Butts are ugly

Why are butts bad for Portland?

In addition to all of the reasons outlined above, there are some specific butt concerns that we need to be aware of in Portland. 

In less than one year, indoor smoking will be banned in Portland.

• The ban is great for indoor air pollution, but could have some negative impacts to the environment if we don't educate ourselves and change our behaviors
• Studies show that butt litter increases dramatically where indoor smoking bans are implemented; unfortunately this means that ecosystems have a much higher chance of being negatively impacted

In Portland, we love our rivers and our nearby ocean.  We have known for some time that cigarettes are a source of air pollution.  However, recently scientists have discovered just how dangerous they are for water pollution. 

• The cigarette filter was designed to trap toxic chemicals, when submerged in water these chemicals are released into the water; butts can release chemicals such as cadmium, lead and arsenic into our marine environment
• Plastic pieces from butts are often mistaken for food and have been found in the stomachs of fish, birds, whales and other marine life
• When butts are littered on sidewalks and streets, rain pushes them into storm drains which flow into the rivers, bays, lagoons and oceans - think of all the rain we get in Portland...
• Litter in waterways degrades water quality, wildlife habitat and the recreational enjoyment of rivers, bays and beaches
• Nicotine is lethal to fish and other sea life

What can you do to help with the battle of the butts?

We are glad you asked...there is so much you can do!

• Mark your calendars and sign up for the Portland Butt Hunt! 
• Contact us (our contact information is below) to discuss opportunities to sponsor the butt hunt - we need food, tshirts, press coverage, etc. etc. 
• Please talk about this issue to anyone and everyone, pass along a link to this site!  Studies show that the only way we will win the battle of the butts is by changing behaviors through education, peer pressure and enforcement of anti-litter laws. 
• If you smoke, be a leader and don't litter.  If your friends smoke, encourage them to be leaders too.   Help stop the litter! 
• Start your own butt hunt, encourage your friends and family to help.  The butt hunt should not be only a one day event, the butt hunt needs to continue until we get ahead of the problem.
• Urge cigarette manufacturers to take responsibility for the toxins in their product.
• Urge your politicians to enforce the litter laws.
• Watch this video:

Contact Us

Please Email Us if you:

• Are interested in being an event sponsor
• Are a member of the media and you'd like to talk to us
• Are interested in getting more information about us or about the event
• Have some feedback about the site or the idea

We look forward to hearing from you!

Want to learn more?

There is no shortage of information available on this topic.  Here are are few good links to get you started: 

http://www.preventcigarettelitter.org/

http://www.buttsout.net/litter_stats