Another reason to quit vaping? The environmental impact of e-cigarettes

Topic

Harmful Effects of Tobacco

Subtopic

Environment

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Not-so-disposable e-cigarettes: Young people grapple with e-cigarette waste amid lack of safe disposal options

Tobacco and the environment

There are many reasons why people want to quit vaping — physical and mental health, financial freedom, influence from family and friends, and more.

Another reason that may motivate people to leave e-cigarettes behind? The huge environmental cost.

The rise of disposable e-cigarettes

Flavored, high-nicotine disposable e-cigarettes dominate the market, and these products are now being disposed of in record numbers, contributing to kilotons of electronic waste that already exist in landfills.

Disposable e-cigarettes lead surge in nicotine sales

Disposable e-cigarettes saw a huge rise in popularity after they were exempted from federal restrictions in 2020 that only removed flavored pod-based e-cigarettes from the market. Following these restrictions, use of disposable e-cigarettes increased over 1,000% between 2019 and 2020 among high school e-cigarette users.

As of December 2024, 93.4% of over 7,000 e-cigarette products available on the market were disposable devices.

Most people throw away used e-cigarettes, contributing to tons of toxic e-waste

Recycling programs and safe disposal guidelines for disposable e-cigarettes are virtually non-existent, and most users have no choice but to dispose of e-cigarettes in the regular trash. Disposing of e-cigarettes in the trash can lead to fires, because each device contains a lithium battery which cannot be removed safely.

Many people also litter e-cigarettes on the street, where they can leak toxic chemicals into the environment.

A toxic, plastic problem: E-cigarette waste and the environment

In a 2024 Truth Initiative study, researchers collected data from a national sample of 1,313 U.S. residents ages 15-24 who reported using disposable e-cigarettes in the past 30 days. Half (52.9%) of respondents discarded their empty disposables in the regular trash, and reported throwing away around 3 disposable e-cigarettes each month. This research builds on Truth Initiative data from 2022 which found that two-thirds (68%) of disposable e-cigarette users threw their empty disposable e-cigarettes in the trash, 13% dropped them in regular recycling bins, 9% littered them on the ground, and 8% sent them to electronic recycling facilities.

Industry accountability is long overdue. Retailers can make a difference.

Currently, the majority of e-cigarettes are on the market illegally — and many of them are disposable. Only 41 e-cigarette products have been granted approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and may be lawfully sold in the U.S.

Retailers must act swiftly and in compliance with the law to remove these products from the shelves to ensure a safer future for all.