Dear Lawmakers: It's time for smoke-free beaches | Opinion

Dear lawmakers,

I am writing to kindly ask you to pass HB 105 and SB 224, bills to give our communities the choice to make our beaches and parks smoke-free.

HB 105 and SB 224 are what the people want. In a statewide poll of likely Florida voters, the overwhelming majority want to prohibit the use of cigarettes and other tobacco products on beaches and in state parks.

Gilchrist County and Martin County have passed resolutions asking the Florida Legislature to repeal the preemption on regulating secondhand tobacco smoke, and numerous Florida cities, big and small, have passed similar resolutions. 

Current Florida law exposes seniors, families with young children and others to harmful secondhand smoke while at our beaches and parks. The deleterious effects of secondhand smoke, especially in children, are numerous and well documented, and so is tobacco’s impact on the environment.

According to Keep America Beautiful, cigarette butts remain the most littered item in America. They make up one third of the litter found on beaches and in parks.

Tobacco litter is toxic, nonbiodegradable and devastating to marine wildlife. According to the United Nations International Maritime Organization, 177 species of marine animals and 111 species of shorebirds are affected by tobacco litter, causing unnecessary malnutrition, starvation, and death. Cigarette filters have been found in the stomachs of fish, birds, whales and other marine creatures who mistake them for food.

People who visit our state parks and beaches expect to experience clean fresh air. Tobacco smoke mars this experience.

That is why all the parks and beaches of California, Hawaii, Maine, and New Jersey are smoke-free, and over 1500 municipalities across America prohibit smoking in their parks.

Having tobacco-free parks and beaches would provide families and children healthy environments and allow Florida to fairly compete with smoke-free vacation destinations for tourist dollars.

HB 105 and SB 224 will do much more than keep tobacco litter off our beaches and out of our parks. If enacted, they will restore local control of our beaches and parks to our communities. They will also protect the environment and our children, reduce cleanup costs, improve the health of our citizens and increase tourism. It is the right thing to do. So please pass HB 105 and SB 224 to give us the freedom to make our parks and beaches smoke-free.

John Michael Pierobon is an active member of the Tobacco Free Partnership of Broward County and the Tobacco-Free Workgroup of the Consortium for a Healthier Miami-Dade.