Cigarette butts may be small, but they’re the #1 item collected at our cleanups across the Crystal Coast. Made of plastic, not cotton, filters never fully break down. Instead, they leach harmful chemicals into our waterways, wash into marshes and estuaries, and threaten marine life from fish and crabs to seabirds and sea turtles. With trillions of cigarette butts discarded worldwide each year, this toxic plastic pollution is one of the most persistent and preventable problems facing our coast.
The Surfrider Foundation’s Hold Onto Your Butt campaign tackles this issue head-on. By installing cigarette butt receptacles at high-traffic locations, handing out portable pocket ashtrays, and raising awareness through cleanups and events, we’re working to keep litter off our beaches and out of our ocean. From smoke-free beaches to business partnerships that reduce waste at the source, our volunteers and community partners track the butts collected, helping us understand where cigarette waste is most concentrated and fueling local solutions.
Every cigarette butt diverted from the sand or sidewalk is a victory for our coast. Together, we can create a cleaner, healthier Crystal Coast by turning awareness into action: one butt at a time.
The Hold Onto Your Butts campaign empowers volunteers to protect our Crystal Coast by collecting cigarette litter, installing receptacles, and raising awareness and raising awareness so that our beaches and waterways stay cleaner and safer for people and marine life.
The Goals for Surfrider’s “Hold On To Your Butt” campaign include:
• Reduce cigarette litter. • Increase public awareness about the problem. • Advocate for better enforcement and implementation of littering/smoking laws. • Educate consumers about the impacts of tobacco litter on the environment.
To raise awareness and reduce pollution, the HOTYB works on the following projects:
• Working to place more butt receptacles in outdoor areas throughout neighboring communities • Cooperating with local & state police for more aggressive litter law enforcement • Handing out personal ashtrays to smokers • Supporting smoking bans for beaches, parks, and public areas • Generate community awareness to remind smokers that butts are litter too.
Donations allow us maintain and purchase new cigarette butt canisters to install in key areas.
.png "LinkTree thumbnails (13)")