Have you ever considered what cigarette butts could be good for? In fact, these nasty remains of the tobacco industry are a plague on every place people like to congregate. Their acetate fibers decompose take 5 to 15 years to decompose, ensuring the little pieces of trash smokers leave behind stay there for a long time.
However, a surfer from California named Taylor Lane has managed to put them to a good use by making a surfboard out of them.
"This is the most polluting item picked up on the beach," creator Taylor Lane told the Orange County Register. "And no one thinks twice that you can do anything with it."
According to a report by the India Times, Lane and his friend spent their summer plucking cigarette butts from the beach, parking lots and local paths in Santa Cruz, cementing them together with styrofoam.
Une planche de surf conçue avec des mégots de cigarettes! https://t.co/jcQjhMwFuu pic.twitter.com/5cpI0ucfOP
— The Rider Post (@TheRiderPost) 25 октября 2017 г.
The result is a fully functional 7.7 kg board named the "Roach Tail" that looks like a huge, flat ashtray.
A Santa Cruz surfer Taylor Lane made a surf board using 10,000 cigarette butts and won a recycled surfboard contest! pic.twitter.com/JfgYE20hOd
— Caitlin Conrad (@CaitlinKSBW) 24 октября 2017 г.
According to the Wavelength Magazine, this is quite a heavy board, and because of that, seriously lacks in maneuverability. On the other hand, it does have an advantage.
Surfboard made from 10,000 cigarette butts is the ultimate Upcycle surf craft pic.twitter.com/yZFshXYkdn
— outdoorsy (@outdoor_newsy) 25 октября 2017 г.
"I was happy to discover that while it was nearly impossible to turn, the Roach Tail had incredible speed through flat sections," said Micheal Ciaramella, a reporter of another surf magazine, Stab, who had an opportunity to test the board.
The Roach Tail won first prize at the annual "Creators & Innovators Upcycle Contest" hosted by the Vissla surfing gear brand and the nonprofit Surfrider Foundation.
