Disposable vapes will be banned in the UK to protect children’s health and tackle the growing stream of waste they create, the Government announced today.
Nearly five million disposable vapes are thrown away in the UK every week, and there have been several incidents involving fires in recycling and waste trucks caused by their lithium-ion batteries.
Veolia’s senior executive vice president for Northern Europe, Gavin Graveson, said: ‘When faced with an environmental crisis, every product that enters the market should be designed for recyclability.
‘Disposable vapes are a clear example of when products have been designed with no thought for their environmental impact and should be subject to an extended producer responsibility scheme that incentivises the right eco-design.’
The chairman of the Local Government Association’s (LGA) community wellbeing board, David Fothergill, said: ‘We’re delighted that the Government has listened to the longstanding concerns of the LGA and councils and are taking decisive action to ban single-use vapes.
‘Disposable vapes are inherently unsustainable products, meaning an outright ban remains the most effective solution to this problem.’
If this article was of interest, check out our feature, Calling time on disposable vapes
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