Cigarette butt recycling in South Korea: environmental policy failure and the limits of extended producer responsibility

Background and regulatory context

Cigarette butts are the most commonly discarded plastic litter worldwide and a persistent source of environmental contamination. Their cellulose acetate filters retain toxic substances from tobacco smoke, including nicotine, heavy metals and carcinogens, which can leach into soil and water and harm ecosystems and human health.1–3 Despite this, tobacco products remain largely excluded from extended producer responsibility (EPR) frameworks. EPR extends producer responsibility across a product’s entire lifecycle, from design to end-of-life disposal; it is distinct from the polluter-pays principle, and implementation arrangements vary considerably across jurisdictions.4 Globally, while EPR systems for packaging have existed since the 1990s, cigarette filters were only first subjected to mandatory EPR obligations under the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive of 2019, with implementation due by January 2023—though uptake has been uneven and frequently undermined by tobacco industry interference.4 5…

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