Joule on JUUL: Environmental Impacts of E-Cigarettes
E-cigarettes harm more than just human lungs; e-cigarettes harm the planet. E-cigarettes and e-cigarette single use pods are quickly becoming a disposable nightmare. The unregulated disposal of these products is not only causing a buildup of plastic waste but also environmental contamination. According to the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at the University of California, San Francisco, “each stage of the e-cigarette product lifecycle, including mining, manufacturing, using and disposing of, could pose potential environmental harm.” To fully understand this potential harm, it is important to look at both the single-use pods as well as the e-cigarette itself.
It is widely accepted that single-use, disposable plastic products have numerous adverse effects on the environment. Products such as non-reusable plastic coffee K-Cups and plastic straws have attracted media attention for their waste production and multiple harms to the environment and wildlife. Awareness of this environmental issue has prompted the transition away from such products. While the switch to reusable K-cups and paper straws has become standard in many households, encouraging people to change their e-cigarette smoking habits are more challenging.
For example, single-use plastic pods for JUUL contain an average of 200 puffs per pod. According to one online user, a single pod is about the equivalent of a pack of cigarettes. Thus, if an individual ordinally smoked one pack of cigarettes per day, the transition to vaping would equate to one pod per day. While the lifespan of each pod varies per user, once the user has exhausted the 200 puffs in a pod, the pod is spent and can no longer be used. Most users dispose of pods as they would any other type of trash. The constant disposal of pods is contributing to the growing waste that nonreusable plastic products like these are creating.
At first glance, this usage rate does not appear all that alarming. When equated to K-cups or plastic straws, the use of one pod per day seems relatively reasonable. However, the disposal of pods is more dangerous than similar single-use products, like K-cups and plastic straws, because disposed of pods often still contain nicotine liquid and other harmful chemicals.
Moreover, the E-cigarette contains plastics, electronic circuitry, heavy metals, and also nicotine residue. A 2015 study by researchers at the University of Florida found that sometimes enough of these materials are found to qualify as hazardous waste. When disposed of, devices can leach heavy metals, battery acid, and nicotine residue into the environment and groundwater. While many studies are being conducted to analyze the effects of the e-cigarette vapors to air quality and human health, more attention should be given to the effects of the disposed of products to groundwater contamination.
Looking to the future, initiatives such as manufacturer buy-back programs or reusable pods can hugely alter the impact e-cigarettes, like JUUL, are having on the environment. As people become more environmentally conscious of the negative impact e-cigarettes have, pressure will fall on manufacturers, lawmakers, and users to alter the way e-cigarettes are used and disposed of. As a society, we are constantly learning about the dangers that single-use plastic products are having on the environment. Hopefully, e-cigarette usage and disposal will evolve and one day no longer pose a threat to humans and the planet alike.
References:
https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/emerging-tobacco-products/3-ways-juul-harms-environment
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-ecigarettes-waste/e-cigarette-policy-should-consider-environmental-effects-expert-says-idUSKCN1N403P
https://www.npr.org/2019/11/28/783551058/how-vaping-could-be-damaging-the-environment
https://www.inverse.com/article/50195-how-to-dispose-of-e-cigarettes
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ecigarettes-put-the-envir_b_7108124
https://www.quora.com/How-long-does-a-JUUL-pod-last-an-average-user