title: Quantifying littered cigarette butts to measure effectiveness of smoking bans to building perimeters.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The authors estimated the number of violations of a university policy that prohibited smoking within 25 ft of all campus buildings.
  
  
  METHODS
  The project was conducted by 13 student researchers from the university and a member of the local public health department.
  
  
  METHODS
  Students quantified cigarette butts that were littered in a 30-day period inside the prohibited smoking area of 7 campus buildings (large residential hall, small residential hall, administrative building, 2 academic buildings, campus cafeteria, and student union).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Investigators found a total of 7,861 cigarette butts (large residential hall: 1,198; small residential hall: 344; administrative building: 107; 2 academic buildings: 1,123 and 806; campus cafeteria: 2,651; and student union: 1,632).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings suggest that there is low compliance with the university's smoking policy. The described project may be repeated by students at other universities as a method to advocate for policy change.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Education, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA. cmseitz@uncg.edu
authors.forename: Christopher M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Seitz
authors.forename: Robert W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Strack
authors.forename: Muhsin Michael
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Orsini
authors.forename: Carrie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rosario
authors.forename: Christie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Haugh
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rice
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Wyrick
authors.forename: Lorelei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wagner
mesh_terms: D019983:Guideline Adherence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D013334:Students; D014495:Universities