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Koja je cijena pušenja? – Opasnosti za okoliš
Summary
This Croatian paper reviews the environmental hazards of cigarette butt litter, noting that approximately 80% of cigarette butts are discarded into the environment. Cigarette filters are made from cellulose acetate, a polymer that degrades slowly and leaches toxic chemicals into soil and water. The authors discuss biodegradable filter alternatives as a strategy to reduce plastic pollution from tobacco products.
Konzumiranje duhanskih proizvoda ne predstavlja samo zdravstveni već i važan ekološki problem. U prosjeku je oko 80 % opušaka odbačeno u okoliš. Najveći problem odbačenih opušaka su kemijski spojevi koji su štetni za ljude i okoliš te filtri koji se sporo razgrađuju u prirodi. Klasične cigarete imaju filtar napravljen od celuloznog acetata, odnosno polimernog materijala, koji nije biorazgradiv. Celulozni filtri su alternativa polimernim filtrima jer su biorazgradivi, te samim time i manje štetni za okoliš i organizme. Električne cigarete su alternativa klasičnim cigaretama zbog jednostavnijeg sastava i zbog pretpostavke da je to zdravija opcija, a ujedno je izbjegnut i problem zaostalih opušaka. Odbačene opuške možemo primijetiti u svakodnevnom životu. Pomoću vjetra i oborina transportiraju se s kopna u vodeni okoliš te još dugi niz godina otpuštaju štetne kemikalije, a s vremenom potonu na dno. Svrha ovog rada bila je razmotriti štetan učinak odbačenih opušaka na okoliš pomoću testova ekotoksičnosti. Istraženi su radovi koji ispituju ekotoksičnost na morskim i slatkovodnim vrstama u vodenom ekosustavu (bentos, plankton, nekton), kao i na kopnenim organizmima (biljke, beskralješnjaci, kralješnjaci). Istraživanja na vodenim organizmima pokazuju osjetljivost na štetne spojeve koji se nalaze u odbačenim opušcima. Također, odbačeni opušci negativno utječu i na kopneni ekosustav, što je ustanovljeno istraživanjima na mikrobiološkim zajednicama u tlu te biljkama, beskralješnjacima i kralješnjacima. Zaključno, potrebno je informirati pušače o štetnosti odbačenih opušaka u okoliš te ih educirati o pravilnom odlaganju opušaka. Štoviše, problem se može dodatno smanjiti provedbom recikliranja opušaka.
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