Facility
‘Butts off our campus’ days: Make our campus butt-free!
All too often, people still throw cigarette butts on the street without thinking about the consequences. Although it may seem harmless, nothing could be further from the truth. Cigarettes are very bad for the environment: just one cigarette butt can pollute up to eight litres of water!
Even though smoking is prohibited on the grounds of Leiden University, you will still see a lot of cigarette butts on and around campus. Besides the fact that the University wants to encourage people to stop smoking, we also want to prevent the environmental damage caused by cigarette filters. With this in mind, the new academic year will see the return of action days to clean up the University campus and raise awareness among students and staff about the negative effects of smoking.
About the ‘Butts off our campus’ days
During the ‘Butts off our campus’ days, the Peukenzee squad will be picking up cigarette filters by hand from on and around the University grounds to raise awareness in a positive way and to contribute to a better environment.
The ‘Butts off our campus’ days will also be an easy way for smokers to find information about quitting smoking. SineFuma, an organisation that specialises in helping people to give up smoking, will also be present with an information stand and will be able to explain when you are most likely to successfully quit smoking and what exactly a cigarette contains. You will also be able to do a free breath test to see how addicted you are to smoking. So be sure to drop by, find out more and, most importantly, get inspired to help us work towards a sustainable society!
For more information about quitting smoking, see ikstopnu.nl, rookvrijookjij.nl (in Dutch) or contact your GP. Since 2020, health insurers have no longer charged an excess for programmes that help you quit smoking.
Schedule
| Location | Date | |
| WSD | 13 September |
Information and cigarette waste collection (all day) |
| UB | 15 September | Cigarette waste collection (10:00-12:30) |
| KOG | 15 September | Information (11:00-15:00) and cigarette waste collection |
| WH, SBS | 20 September | Information (11:00-15:00) and cigarette waste collection |
| PdlC | 22 September | Information (11:00-15:00) and cigarette waste collection |
| Van Steenis | 22 September | Cigarette waste collection (13:30-16:00) |
| Huygens | 17 October | Information (11:00-15:00) and cigarette waste collection |
| Snellius | 17 October | Cigarette waste collection (13:30-16:00) |
Need to dispose of a cigarette butt? Use a bin or a pocket ashtray
To reduce environmental damage, throw your cigarette butt in one of the bins or put it in a pocket ashtray. This will help to prevent microplastics and toxins from ending up in water and soil. Pocket ashtrays will be available at the information stand during the ‘Butts off our campus’ days.