the beach is not an ashtray... neither is the sidewalk or the city street

rule number one about blogging is
don't blog about the work place
so... this statement is not so much about my work place
this is a statement about most each and every work place

as the modern age has moved to the smoke free workplace
the smokers have taken to the streets
well... for some the smoking is limited to the loading dock or the alley
so the smokers have taken it to the streets, the alleys, and the loading docks

which has the smokers taking their work approved smoking break
then each work approved cigarette break is always finished with the same action
the disposal of the cigarette butt

how the cigarette butt is disposed of may vary, but the majority of the time the butt is tossed to the ground
it is shocking that so many of these officially or unofficially designated smoking spots without having an ashtray or a trash can in that same spot
but
beyond the shocking abscence of the ash tray
it is more shocking that someone could litter in this fashion as if cigarette butts do not qualify as trash
volume adds up
each butt is small, but the butts add up
not only do the butts add up, but the butts do not break down

the cigarette butts that are flicked to the streets are comprised of a long list of toxic chemicals

the volume adds up as do the toxins
in many of these areas the butts go into the street, drift to the curb, down into the sewer, only to go into the creeks and streams, then the rivers, the bays and the oceans

but...
if the smoker is not thinking about the enviroment
maybe the smoker should think how obnoxious it is to just toss liter on the ground
to expect that the building janitors or the city workers are responsible to sweep up after them
these clean ups are for incidental trash...
not for intentional trash

the fact is
this is just another case of action without thought

after a quick scan in the wonderful world of the web I found some information of the topic

www.cigarettelitter.org
the facts

GOOGLE the topic
there is more information out there

a friend of mine has been emailing me some info on the concept of a WATERSHED
people need to realize the interaction of it all
it is all cumulative
it all adds up
the oil leaking our your old beater car
the fertilizer from your lawn
the white wash from rinsing your paint brushes