Overview

• Municipalities in Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are rolling out or evaluating no-smoking zones on their beaches to curb cigarette butt pollution.
• Eckernförde’s 2022 ban at the main beach cut annual cigarette butt finds from around 4,000 to 1,000 per cleanup.
• Föhr’s main resort enforced a beach smoking ban in 2020 with limited smoker sections and ashtray stations and has encountered no recorded complaints.
• Göhren pioneered smoke-free beach sections in 2010 and reports that families and sports visitors appreciate the designated no-smoking areas.
• Local councils retain authority over beach regulations and towns such as Lübeck and Kiel have chosen ashtray programs and litter fines instead of full smoking prohibitions.