Litter-picking vaping products in Darlington's Stanhope Park

I went to Stanhope Park today (Thursday, January 19) with my litter picker and I was shocked at how many E-cigarettes, E-liquids, and cartridges I found during my short walk through the park.

As a resident of Darlington, I see many vaping products littered in our streets and open spaces every day, but I had never gone looking for them specifically, until today.

I found 12 vaping products very quickly, noting that another litter-hating individual was also doing his bit to keep the park tidy that morning, meaning there will have been many more prior to my arrival.

The Echo's Aja Dodd ready to fill a carrier bag full of littered vaping products (Image: Public)

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I found nine discarded E-cigarettes and three E-liquid cartridges during a 30-minute walk.

Councillor Andy Keir, Darlington Borough Council’s Cabinet member for Local Services, said: “We all have a responsibility to keep Darlington tidy. Not dropping litter – and challenging those who do – is a big part of that, and I call on everyone to play their part.

“Litter is a blight on our streets and open spaces – whether that’s in the form of cans, bottles, paper, plastic, food and drink wrappers, cigarette ends or discarded e-cigarette materials.

“Anyone caught deliberately littering can face a fine of up to £150. If you witness littering and can identify the perpetrator, call 01325 406999 and we will investigate.”

Discarded E-cigarette (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

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The litter is indicative of a wider issue of abuse of vaping products, and a survey by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) found 60 per cent of local Trading Standards services are most concerned about high street shops selling illicit vapes or vaping products to children.

CTSI chief executive John Herriman said: “While we recognise that vaping can be a useful quitting aid for smokers, we are worried about increasing breaches of the law, with many non-compliant devices being sold on the UK’s high streets.

“There is also an increasing problem with vaping products being sold to children in many general retail premises such as mobile phone shops, gift shops and convenience stores.

“Trading Standards teams are doing vital work by cracking down on the unscrupulous retailers who are selling these products to young people without the legally required age verification checks. It is important that vaping products comply with rules that were established to safeguard public health, and that they do not end up in the hands of children.”

Discarded E-liquid (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

Discarded E-cigarette (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

Discarded E-liquid (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

Blueberry-flavoured E-liquid (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

'Vampire vape' E-liquid (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

'Lost Mary' E-cigarette (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

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Kiwi, passionfruit and guava-flavoured E-liquid (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

Discarded E-cigarette (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)

Discarded E-cigarette (Image: Aja Dodd, Newsquest)