A man smoking with an electronic cigarette
A salesman demonstrates an electronic cigarette during the first international fair of electronic cigarette and vapology ''Vapexpo'' in Bordeaux, southwestern France, REUTERS

The New South Wales government has made an announcement that smoking will be banned in the national parks around the state. Rob Stokes, the environment minister, said that the ban would help lessen the chance of bushfires and also reduce the litter around.

According to Yahoo News, in Australia, about seven billion cigarette butts are dropped every year. It can also lead to pollution of the environment as it contains a lot of hazardous chemicals like arsenic and lead. It was found, by the Royal Commission looking into Victorian bushfires, that one of the most likely causes of a bushfire in Australia was cigarette butts.

A spokesman from the New South Wales Rural Fire spokesman said that apart from discarded cigarette butts, the other causes of bushfires were unattended campfires, barbecues and arson.

On Nov 16, Stokes announced that the ban would be put into action in picnic areas, campgrounds, beaches as well as walking tracks and national parks roads. He said that the government was serious about reducing the risk of bushfires as well as littering in New South Wales. He continued that the ban will help reduce litter and keep the communities safer.

Stokes also said that there were 860 national parks in New South Wales that helped protect the most beautiful and popular natural areas. He continued that they wanted to make sure the national parks are safe and healthy for everyone.

The move by the government came in after Police and Emergency Minister Stuart Ayres said that the penalty for littering cigarettes that were lit had gone up from $330 to $660, becoming exactly double. The fine for discarding a lit cigarette on a total fire ban day was also doubled and went from $660 to $1,320.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the ban will be effective from Jan 1. This, the government feels, will be enough time to allow for the implementation of an educational campaign about the issue.

A keen fisherman, Neil Dowsett, loved to smoke while fishing in Woko National Park. He believed that the total ban was over the top. He has been a regular at the parks for fishing sessions in the last 20 years. He asked how the government was going to police the ban.