Yes, vaping is bad for the environment! Here’s why:
Chemical Waste – Toxic chemicals found in e-cigarette liquids include lead, acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, and nicotine1 – when e-cigarettes are thrown away, these chemicals can spread into the surrounding environment.
Electronic Waste (“E-Waste”) – In 2023, 844 million vape devices were discarded around the world.2 The e-waste produced by vape devices mainly comes from lithium-ion batteries, which are especially damaging because they contain harmful chemicals like nickel, manganese, and cobalt that can leak and spread if not disposed of properly. This can also increase fire risk as batteries break down in waste facilities.3
Plastic and Metal Waste – An estimated 150 million disposable e-cigarettes are discarded each year in the United States – this means that at least “five vapes are being thrown away every second.” 4
For more about this, check out…
1. Shehata, SA, et al., “Vaping, Environmental Toxicants Exposure, and Lung Cancer Risk,” Cancers (Basel), September 12, 2023; 15(18):4525.
2. Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Forum, “‘Invisible’ E-Waste: Almost $10 Billion in Essential Raw Materials Recoverable in World’s Annual Mountain of Electronic Toys, Cables, Vapes & more,” December 10, 2023.
3. Pourchez, J, et al., “From smoking to vaping: a new environmental threat?,” The Lancet, vol. 10, no.7, July 2022, pp. 63-64; U.S. EPA, “Frequent Questions on Lithium-Ion Batteries,” https://www.epa.gov/recycle/frequent-questions-lithium-ion-batteries; Office of Resource Conversation and Recovery, “An Analysis of Lithium-Ion Battery Fires in Waste Management and Recycling,” United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2021; Chen, Z, et al, “Safety Concerns for the Management of End-of-Life Lithium-Ion Batteries,” Glob Chall. 2022 Jul 25; 6(12):2200049.
4. Chapman, Matthew & Johnston Fin, “Lithium Being Trashed By The Tonne As Disposable Vapes Flood The U.S. Market,” The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, December 15, 2022.
