Tobacco and the environment

Action on Smoking and Health – July 2004

Extent of tobacco production
Tobacco is a temperate crop which is grown in more than 100 countries world-wide, mostly in developing
countries. China is the world's largest producer, followed by the USA, India, Brazil and Turkey. These five
countries produce nearly two-thirds of global output.1

Pesticides
Tobacco is a sensitive plant prone to many diseases. Consequently, huge amounts of fertiliser, herbicide and
pesticides are used in the growing of tobacco: up to sixteen applications may be made during a three-month
growing period. Among the pesticides commonly used are aldicarb and chlorpyrifos, both highly toxic
substances. Methyl bromide, an ozone-depleting chemical, is also commonly used to fumigate the soil prior to
planting tobacco seedlings. In 1997, over 5.5 million pounds of methyl bromide were applied to tobacco fields
worldwide. 2 The effects of these chemicals are not monitored generally but it is known that they leach into the
soil and find their way into streams, rivers, and food chains. These substances may indirectly cause the genetic
selection of pesticide-resistant mosquitoes or flies, making the control of diseases such as malaria much more
difficult. 3

Green Tobacco Sickness
In addition to the health risks posed by using pesticides, tobacco growers are susceptible to an occupational
illness known as green tobacco sickness. This is caused by the absorption of nicotine through the skin from
contact with wet tobacco leaves. Symptoms of GTS include nausea, weakness, dizziness and abdominal
cramps, and fluctuations in blood pressure and heart rates. It is not known exactly now many tobacco
workers are affected by green tobacco sickness but one study of migrant workers in North Carolina suggests
that 41% of the workers get the illness at least once during harvest season. 4
Tobacco and deforestation
After harvesting, tobacco is cured to preserve it for storage, transport and processing. Most tobacco is flue
cured which entails passing heated air through the harvested leaves. In many developing countries trees are
cut down to provide fuel for the curing process and for the construction of the curing barns. An estimated
200,000 ha of woodlands are removed by tobacco farming each year. Deforestation occurs mainly in
developing countries amounting to 1.5% of global net losses of forest cover or 4.6% of total national
deforestation. 5 In Malawi, which is heavily dependent on tobacco as an export crop, more than 35,000 tonnes
of tobacco leaves are cured annually. About 12 cubic metres of wood are needed for every tonne of tobacco. 6
In one region of Malawi, nearly 80% of the wood cut down is used for tobacco, even though tobacco farmers
make up only 3% of the farmers in the area. In semi-arid areas where tobacco thrives, the loss of trees can
make land more vulnerable to desertification and unfit for agriculture. For example, in the tobacco growing Aura
district of north west Uganda, sheet erosion is now very evident and much of the topsoil has been washed
away. 7

Industry response
Faced with dwindling sources of wood fuel, the tobacco industry has attempted to address the problem by
encouraging tobacco farmers to plant trees along with tobacco. However, the plantations set up by BAT in
Kenya for example, consist largely of non-native, fast-growing eucalyptus and cypresses which adversely affect
biodiversity and can lower the water table. Some farmers are reluctant to use these trees as fuel, preferring
instead to sell their trees as building poles while continuing to collect wood from what remains of the natural
forest. 8
The production of tobacco from the planting of the seed to the marketing of the finished product is tightly
controlled by the multinational companies. They offer inducements to the farmers in developing countries in the
form of financial incentives, technical expertise, supplies, seeds, fertiliser, and a guaranteed foreign exchange
for the tobacco crop after harvest. Although the industry provides employment for many unskilled workers and
may help with education and social welfare, dependence on tobacco by the governments of poor countries
means that little is done to counter the growing trend in tobacco consumption in these countries. 3

Impact on food production and health
The growing of tobacco means that less land is available for food crops. While some food is grown between
crops of tobacco, it has been estimated that 10 to 20 million people could be fed by food crops grown instead of
tobacco. 3 A cost-benefit analysis of tobacco growing for developing countries has shown that the short-term
gain from tobacco is likely to be offset by long-term costs. Many developing countries are entering a phase in
which life expectancy after childhood has improved because of the control of infectious diseases but there are
now substantial increases in tobacco-related illness. In Pakistan, for example, lung cancer is now the most
commonly reported fatal cancer. In India, a six fold increase in mortality from bronchitis and emphysema has
been recorded, coinciding with a dramatic increase in cigarette consumption. Tobacco consumption may affect
whole families indirectly. A study in Bangladesh found that tobacco expenditure compounds the effects of
poverty and cause a serious decline in living standards amongst the poor. 9

Diversification
In developed countries, a fall in domestic consumption combined with higher labour costs has prompted a move
towards diversification into other crops. In Canada, for example, the number of farms producing tobacco
decreased from 2916 in 1981 to 1326 in 1992. 10

Pollution
Burning tobacco is the main source of indoor pollution in the developed world. Tobacco smoke contains about
4,000 chemicals including carcinogens, irritants and toxic gases. The health impact of breathing environmental
tobacco smoke is well documented. See Fact sheet no 8, Passive smoking or the more detailed Passive
smoking brief for further information.
A US study highlighted the damage discarded cigarette ends cause to the marine environment. One living
organism tested to determine the level of chemical in the environment was the planktonic animal Daphinia
magna (Water Flea). The study revealed that chemicals in cigarette butts are highly toxic to water fleas at
concentrations above 0.125 cigarette butts per litre of water. 11
The International Costal Clean up Day’s 2003 worldwide beach, river and streams clean-up found cigarette litter
to be the major source of debris, accounting for 29.5 percent of all items found and numbering 1.922 million. 12
In a survey conducted by Keep Britain Tidy in 2002, cigarette-related litter was found in 77 per cent of all
locations across Britain. 13 As part of its reclaim the streets campaign, The Daily Mirror found that cigarette
ends, packets and matches were the most commonly found items of rubbish, with 122 tonnes of cigarette
related rubbish being dropped every day across the UK. 14

Fire
Cigarettes and matches are a common cause of fires. Smokers’ materials and matches were the most frequent
source of ignition causing accidental dwelling fire deaths in 2002. The leading cause of fatal accidental dwelling
fires (40% of the total) was careless handling of fire or hot substances (such as the careless disposal of
cigarettes). The number of deaths in this category fell slightly, from 147 in 2001 to 141 in 2002. This continues
the general downward trend – in 1992 the figure stood at 207. Domestic fires caused by smokers’ materials (i.e.
lighters, cigarettes, cigars or pipe tobacco) fell by 9% to 4,400. 15

For further information see the ASH briefing: The environmental impacts of tobacco

References
1 Global Tobacco Market. Tobacco Journal International (poster) 2003
2 Tobacco, farmers and pesticides. Pesticide Action Network, 1998 [view abstract]
3 Barry, M. The influence of the US Tobacco industry on the health, economy, and environment of developing
countries. New England J Medicine, 1991; 324: 917-9
4 Tobacco and the Environment. Campaign for Tobacco-free Kids. 2000 [View factsheet ]
5 Geist, HJ. Global assessment of deforestation related to tobacco farming. Tobacco Control 1999; 8: 18-28 [View
abstract]
6 Mponda, F. Forests in need of an alternative cure. Panoscope, October 1994.
7 BAT’s Big Wheeze. The alternative British American Tobacco social and environmental report. ASH, Christian Aid
and Friends of the Earth, 2004
8 Agroforestry in Africa. Panos, 1990.
9 Efroymson, D, et al. Hungry for tobacco: an analysis of the economic impact of tobacco consumption on the poor in
Bangladesh. Tobacco Control, 2001: 10: 212-217 [ view abstract]
10 Joossens, L. Diversification is the future for many tobacco farmers. Tobacco Control 1996; 5: 177-8 [View article]
11 Register, KM. Underwater Naturalist. Bulletin of the American Littoral Society. Cigarette butts as litter. 2000; 25
(2). [view article]
12 International Costal Clean up 2003 Results: Land and underwater clean ups. Top 10 items worldwide [view pdf]
13 Keep Britain Tidy Survey, 2002 [view abstract]
14 Kelly, J. Rubbish dump UK. Daily Mirror, 13 July, 2004 [view article]
15 Fire Statistics United Kingdom, 2002. Office of the Deputy Prime Minister 2004. pg 19 – 21. [View report]