SMOKERS are littering the streets of Bournemouth and using public spaces as a giant ashtray.

Thousands of unsightly and foul-smelling cigarette butts are piled up on pavements and scattered in doorways and on top of walls.

The Daily Echo is examining the issue following the launch of Litter Free Dorset's Bin Your Butts campaign.

We watched hordes of office workers discarding cigarette ends during their breaks and drinkers flinging butts on to the pavements outside pubs in the town.

At one office a metal butt bin attached to a wall was broken with hundreds piled underneath it.

And a wall at the junction of St Stephen's Road and Richmond Hill was being used as an ashtray.

We watched as staff poured out of nearby offices, using the junction as an unofficial smoking area during breaks

They then extinguished their cigarettes on the wall before stuffing the butts into gaps in the wall.

A walk around the town centre revealed cigarette butts in every road, many outside bars, restaurants and cafes.

In August 69 fixed penalties of £80 were issued to smokers in Bournemouth who discarded butts in public places.

Litter Free Dorset is targeting its campaign at smokers in Ferndown and Swanage, areas considered to be hotspots for cigarette littering.

In Ferndown 679 butts were dropped in Victoria Road in just 24 hours and more than 1,500 were dropped along a 0.2 mile stretch of Swanage High Street.

But it's clear that the problem is far more widespread.

Charlie Wild from Litter Free Dorset said the campaign is not anti-smoking but aims to encourage people to dispose of litter responsibly.

She said: "We're encouraging people to put butts in the bin or into personal ashtrays.

"Litter Free Dorset sat down with businesses and community groups to ask them what issue they wanted us to look at - cigarette butts and roadside litter came out top.

"Some people think cigarette filters are biodegradable but they contain plastic which never disappears."

Stuart Best, Bournemouth council's street services manager, said: "Our street cleansing staff are in the town centre from 6am each day, 365 days a year to ensure the streets are clean and tidy. Teams are also active across the town ensuring that roads, streets and pavements are regularly swept and litter bins are emptied.

"There are some areas that are more prone to litter and are visited regularly by cleansing staff. The teams provide additional cleaning to these hotspot areas to make sure they stay as tidy as possible.

"We ask that if anyone sees any litter to please report it to the council, providing as much information as you can and we will take the appropriate action."

'We know it's disgusting'

Smokers who admit using the top of a town centre wall as an ashtray describe their own actions as “disgusting.”

The Echo spoke to smokers congregated at the corner of St Stephen’s Road and Richmond Hill yesterday.

One office worker said: “Yes, it looks disgusting, it is disgusting. In other European countries they simply don’t drop cigarette butts on the ground. I admit, I stub my fag out and put it up here with the others. Smokers, we are our own worst enemies at times. I know some of the offices on Richmond Hill have designated smoking areas as well, so there’s no excuse.”

Another worker, who asked not to be named but said he worked at Nationwide, also admitted using the top of the wall to extinguish his cigarette butt.“We do have two smoking areas at work which both have ashtrays - but you still find butts on the floor. I agree it is disgusting, but it would be easier if there were more smoking bins on Richmond Hill - a lot of people work here, a lot of these workers do smoke.”

Another worker told the Daily Echo: “I tend to do what everyone else does, and pop my ciggie up with the others. If there’s a bin or an ashtray, I use it. The council needs to invest in more smoking bins and ashtrays on the streets.”