WHO Cigarettes and Environment Report

This report published by the World Health Organization (WHO) highlights the impact of cigarette production and consumption on the environment, the consequences of which are often largely overlooked and under-researched. Tobacco production is land, water, and energy intensive, burdening the planet’s already stressed natural resources and ecosystems and threatening the livelihoods of citizens and future development of communities around the world. Ninety percent of all tobacco production is concentrated in developing countries, and several of these top producers are food-deficit countries. Tobacco is also associated with loss of income, productivity, disease, and death, and these effects are disproportionately experienced by these less developed regions. The authors emphasize that the finite resources currently dedicated to tobacco cultivation—including land, water, and labor—could be invested in more profitable, sustainable commodities.

Due to the environmental harm that tobacco causes—in addition to its negative health, social, and economic impacts— tobacco production is incompatible with the global development agenda. As outlined in this report, policy recommendations for mitigating impact include: strengthening data on environmental impacts of the tobacco sector; shifting investment away from tobacco to more sustainable alternatives; imposing taxes and fines to disincentivize smoking; making tobacco producers accountable for waste; assisting farmers in switching to alternative crops; and raising awareness in order to change consumer behaviors. Implementing these policies to reduce tobacco’s environmental footprint will facilitate the world’s transition to a more sustainable path.