Characterizing Smoking-related Litter in Public Parks in Philadelphia

Authors

Russell K. McIntire, PhD, MPH, Thomas Jefferson UniversityFollow
Ashley Lipshaw, MPH, Thomas Jefferson UniversityFollow

Files

Description

Background

• Cigarettes are the most littered item in the country.
• Since 1980 cigarette butts have represented 30-40% of all litter collected from coastal waterways and urban areas among major surveys in the U.S.
• Communities have established smoke free public spaces, including parks, in part to mitigate this source of litter and pollution.
• In 2014, Philadelphia prohibited smoking on all lands and facilities under the jurisdiction of the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation
• However, not all parks in Philadelphia have the same environment to deter smoking, as “Smoke-Free” signs are not posted in all parks

Objectives

This study reports the results of systematic litter audits at four parks in Center City Philadelphia in order to describe major categories and the proportion of smoking-related litter found at parks.

Publication Date

9-5-2019

Keywords

population health, public parks, smoking, epidemiology, litter, Philadelphia, cigarettes

Disciplines

Public Health

Comments

Presented at the Urban Health Symposium

Recommended Citation

McIntire, PhD, MPH, Russell K. and Lipshaw, MPH, Ashley, "Characterizing Smoking-related Litter in Public Parks in Philadelphia" (2019). College of Population Health Posters. 17.
https://jdc.jefferson.edu/jcphposters/17