Potential Toxicity of Contaminants Leached From Cigarette Butts in Coastal Environments

Abstract

Cigarette butts (CB) are the most common litter on beaches worldwide and their incorrect disposal may lead to contamination by many toxic substances. Once in water, CB can release contaminants generated by both manufacturing and burning of cigarettes, which can have their toxic potential increased. A relevant issue is the lack of guidelines for CB management and benchmark values regarding these chemicals and additives for environmental quality purposes. Also, the toxicity of CB leachates is important to address the mixture effect of these chemicals. The present study aimed to provide ecotoxicological information on the main contaminants present in CB leachates and its hazard was assessed in an Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) context. Data on toxic effects for freshwater and marine organisms of substances reported to be leached from CB were obtained from the toxicity databases, and the hazard concentration (HC10), a threshold for protecting 90% of community were determined based on the species sensitivity distribution (SSD) method. The most toxic substances for freshwater environments were benzo(a)anthracene, benzo(a)pyrene, acenaphthene and fluorene, Pb and nicotine. For marine environments, the most toxic chemicals were benzo(a)pyrene, acenaphthene, fluorene and naphthalene, Cu, Pb, and Cd. An overview of CB leachate toxicity to freshwater and marine organisms was produced, indicating a limited number of studies and a gap to be filled.