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by Jessica Allen - Lakes Weekly Bulletin

I recently had family visiting from Sydney, and one thing that shocked them was the amount of smoking and vaping happening in Queenstown’s CBD. It is interesting, I believe, that we market ourselves as clean and green, working toward a carbon zero 2030, and proudly one of the most scenic towns in New Zealand, yet everywhere you turn there seems to be a cloud of smoke.

To be honest, I’d never really thought too much about it, but as I looked around, it was pretty in-your-face. From the little vape stickers stuck all over bins to people smoking and vaping around others that were dining outdoors, and the odd vape strewn along the streets.

I certainly don’t think we need a nanny state. I’d argue that our neighbours across the ditch have gone too far, but certainly what is happening now can’t be sustainable. In Australia they have pretty strict smoking and vaping laws. They’ve introduced new laws that require tobacco companies to print health warnings on each individual cigarette. Vaping laws have also changed with individuals only able to legally purchase vapes from pharmacies for smoking cessation. If you compare that to here, where we have several vape shops in the CBD, some within a stone’s throw of one another, it does seem a little too far the other way. There does seem to be a lot of legislation around smoking, but not so much around vaping.

Then there’s environmental factors to consider. Disposable vapes and cigarette butts aren’t always thrown away responsibly. Disposable vapes are loaded with just enough for a night or two out, but what happens then? While many of the vape stores do provide bins, I’ve certainly seen many just popping them in the bins around town. We know that batteries can cause fires in our waste centres, just look at what happened recently at the recycling centre. And how does all of this fit in with our carbon zero plans?

If people want to smoke or vape, I think they’re well within their rights to, but let’s also be considerate of our fellow humans and of the environment. If we look to Hanmer Springs, they have a smokefree and vapefree initiative in place for the main street, which is supported by the council. Is this something that could be considered here, at least down some of our narrow streets and the beach.

Our council introduced a smoking and vaping ban for Queenstown and Wānaka beaches in 2019, and drafted a smokefree and vapefree policy to align with the previous Government’s goal of becoming a smokefree nation. I guess between Covid and the change of Government, it’s something that lost traction. But do we need our national Government to dictate a change, possibly for the better?

Perhaps my views are in the minority though – I’d love to throw it out there to our community, what do other locals and businesses think?