Butting out for Earth Hour - NEED A SOURCE?

TORONTO, March 23 /CNW/ - When people think of Earth Hour, the first thing that comes to mind is energy conservation. But an often overlooked environmental issue is the impact of cigarettes.

From the pesticides and chemicals sprayed on tobacco leaves to the cigarette butts that litter the ground causing toxins to seep into drinking water, cigarettes contain more than 4,000 environmentally harmful chemicals.

But a number that may surprise many is that it takes the equivalent of one tree to produce 300 cigarettes. When one considers there are currently 4.8 million smokers in Canada smoking an average of 13.3 cigarettes per day, the math is shocking.

    
    -  63.8 million cigarettes smoked daily in Canada

    -  23.3 trillion cigarettes smoked every year in Canada

    -  77.6 million trees killed every year just to support Canada's tobacco
       addiction
    

If every smoker in Canada stopped smoking for just one hour, this would be the effect.

    
    -  2.66 million cigarettes smoked each hour in Canada would not be smoked

    -  8,800 trees would be spared
    

Smoking is one of the most difficult addictions to break, but there are many tools that exist to help Ontarians in their effort to quit. Quitting is a process, not an event, and it is a different experience for everyone.

The Canadian Cancer Society's Smokers' Helpline, encourages Ontarians to set themselves up for success by making a quit plan and getting support throughout the quitting process.

A Quit Specialist from the Canadian Cancer Society Smokers' Helpline can speak about:

    
    -  Creating a personalized quit plan
    -  Quit methods and aids
    -  Staying smoke-free
    -  Support services from the Canadian Cancer Society Smokers' Helpline,
       including phone counselling, an online program and text messaging
    

For further information: To arrange an interview, please contact: Patrick Erlich, Nikki Gentles, Media Profile, O: [phone], [phone], [email protected], [email protected]