The LGA, which represents councils across England and Wales, said it is crucial that that a ban comes into effect rapidly, as there is a risk that as markets close disposable vapes will flood into the UK if they are banned on the continent.
The EU proposing a ban in 2026 and France rolling out a ban in Dec 2023.
Disposable vapes, the LGA said, are also “a hazard for waste and litter collection and cause fires in bin lorries”. The sector has been reporting a large number of fires in recent months which many have put down to lithium-ion batteries found in vapes and other devices.
“This comes at a cost to the council taxpayer through fire damage to equipment and the specialist treatment needed to deal with hazardous waste,” the LGA added. It added: “With 1.3 million disposable vapes thrown away every week, they have also become a regular and obvious item of litter on our streets.”
‘Flawed’
Cllr David Fothergill, chairman of the LGA’s community wellbeing board said: “Councils are not anti-vapes, which are shown to be less harmful than smoking and have a place as a tool to use in smoking cessation.
“However, disposable vapes are fundamentally flawed in their design and inherently unsustainable products, meaning an outright ban will prove more effective than attempts to recycle more vapes.
“Single use vapes blight our streets as litter, are a hazard in our bin lorries, are expensive and difficult to deal with in our recycling centres. Their colours, flavours and advertising are appealing to children and the penalties for retailers selling them don’t go far enough.
“Councils urge the Government to take this action to protect our planet, keep children safe and save taxpayers money.”
I’d say as a vaper (I use a rechargeable and refillable device) and a quality control assistant at a MRF stick to the environment damage these things can do. There is a lot of misinformation about vaping risks going about and you don’t wanna be dragged into that