De grandes villes européennes demandent à l’UE d’interdire les filtres des cigarettes

European cities are urging the EU to ban cigarette filters, citing environmental concerns and lack of health benefits. Cities such as Brussels, Munich, Dublin, and Genoa are part of the "No (Plastic) Filter" campaign, supported by the Hague municipality and the Dutch government, as well as other cities and water management authorities.

The cities argue that the European right of "extended producer responsibility" has failed to reduce cigarette filter pollution, and a complete ban is necessary. Anas Ben Abdelmoumen, a municipal advisor for public cleanliness in Brussels, highlighted that cigarette butts make up 30% of all litter in the city and impose a heavy burden on cleaning crews.

Several other European cities have joined the campaign, as the EU revises two major pieces of legislation that could potentially ban cigarette filters or their plastic content. The World Health Organization also supports the ban on filters, stating that they do not provide any health benefits and only contribute to environmental pollution and high costs for local communities and society.

Tobacco industry claims that filters have a health benefit, as studies show they reduce exposure to certain toxic substances and help comply with EU emission regulations. However, they argue that viable alternatives do not exist. In The Hague, cleaning costs for cigarette butt litter are estimated at 2 million euros per year, according to Deputy Mayor Isabelle Broeders.

She and other city officials argue that banning filters, regardless of the material used, is an important opportunity to be seized in the evaluation of the tobacco products directive. While some alternatives to plastic filters exist, they are not widely used, and manufacturers have lobbied to classify acetyl cellulose, a vegetal-based plastic, as sustainable and biodegradable to exempt it from the single-use plastics directive.

Tobacco lobby group Tobacco Europe opposes any restriction on plastic filters and hopes the EU will focus on waste management, effective enforcement of litter regulations, and proportionate implementation of extended producer responsibility, while promoting future innovations for viable alternatives. However, Brussels and The Hague both believe that merely banning plastic within the filters would be insufficient, as allowing alternative materials could create loopholes for manufacturers to introduce new materials that remain harmful to the environment and urban cleanliness.

The Dutch government focuses on plastic filters for the upcoming single-use plastics directive revision, and may turn to the tobacco products directive if the approach fails. Philosopher and public health researcher Yogi Hendlin from Erasmus University Rotterdam argues that filters are a "prosthesis attached to the end of the cigarette," which people believe retains the most harmful elements of cigarette smoke, but they provide no health benefits and have been shown to increase exposure to toxic substances.