Every resident who wishes to contribute to a cleaner living environment, but has not yet quit smoking, can take a pocket ashtray when they leave home. This initiative by the municipality of Meerhout aims to prevent cigarette butts from ending up on the streets or in nature.
The campaign is part of the Enforcement Week, which runs from October 5th to October 11th, 2026. The pocket ashtray is available at the town hall reception during regular opening hours.
The municipality highlights the importance of this measure with several facts: a single cigarette butt can pollute up to 100 liters of water, globally around 4,500 billion cigarette butts end up in the environment annually, and it takes 10 to 15 years for a butt to decompose. Furthermore, filters break down into harmful microplastics, and animals can ingest them.
