‘Vape wall’: Disturbing scene on busy Melbourne freeway

A photo taken by a driver passing a busy Melbourne freeway has sparked widespread fury online. Here’s why Aussies are “sickened” by the snap.

Aussies have reacted to a driver’s “sickening” photo of a “vape wall” alongside a busy Melbourne freeway.

The disturbing photo was shared to Reddit on Friday, showing dozens of discarded plastic vapes strewn across a roadside barrier on West Gate Freeway after being tossed out of car windows.

“Anyone else seeing this regularly? People throwing used (I assume) vapes at the merge from Westgate and Bolte heading east towards the tunnel,” they wrote in the post.

Many were quick to slam vapers, labelling the act “feral” and “disappointing”.

“Putrid animals,” one person wrote.

“People really have no respect for anything. They are happy to live in their own filth,” said another.

“As a vaper; who uses non-disposable hardware this kind of behaviour sickens me. It’s little wonder that a few morons spoil it for the rest of us,” another wrote.

A number of colourful vapes were strewn across the roadside barrier. Picture: Reddit

Another suggested the spot is regularly cleaned however the vapes keep “coming back within days”.

Others were concerned about the risk disposable vapes pose to the environment with their plastic casing and lithium batteries.

“Disposable vapes are like the worst of humanity. A whole a*** block of plastic with an acid battery so you can suck nicotine smog for a few days then toss it into the world to leak acid,” one person wrote.

“I did buy work at a music venue for a bit and god damn, the amount of vapes that get left behind. I have no idea why disposable vapes are a thing. So awful for the environment,” said another.

It comes after industry experts warn incorrectly discarded vapes have been causing fires at waste facilities.

National Waste and Recycling Industry Council CEO Rick Ralph told the ABC at least 35 fires are breaking out each day in recycling facilities around the country.

“It is directly attributed to lithium-ion batteries because there is no effective and no easy, proper disposal for those items,” he said.

“A vape has an embedded battery in it and more than 1.8 million are being dumped into general waste every week.”

The waste and recycling industry has called for the government to initiate a national collection scheme.

Thousands take up vaping

Research by Roy Morgan found more than 90,000 Australians have taken up vaping over the past three months, taking the total number of adult vapers above 1.7 million.

The research company found Victoria’s adult vaping numbers by 355 per cent over the past five years, while NSW recorded the biggest increase of 470 per cent.

More than 90,000 Australians have taken up vaping over the past three months. Picture: NCA NewsWire /Gaye Gerard

As more Aussies take up vaping, the federal government announced a ban on single-use vapes from being imported into the country from January 1 this year.

Under the rules, the only vapes legally allowed into Australia are pharmaceutical products prescribed by a doctor and given out by a pharmacy to help people quit smoking.

Packaging and flavours used for pharmaceutical vapes have also been severely limited under the new laws.

It’s estimated the reforms will cost people up to $52.1m every year in additional visits to the GP and pharmacy and up to $67.5m on vaping products.

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler said the changes protect Australians, particularly young people, from the harms of vaping and nicotine dependence.

According to the Health Department the illegal market for vapes in Australia represents a “significant” portion of supply and is worth over $400 million annually.

The analysis cited substantial fears that tougher regulations will enable illicit sales to flourish.

“Fears that extra regulation may incentivise growth in the black market for nicotine vapes must also be acknowledged … This is a legitimate risk as tighter regulation will often raise the risk of black-market sales,” it said.

Health Minister Mark Butler said the new laws were ‘critical’ to drive the national smoking rate down to five per cent by 2030.

“The government is determined to support Australians tackling nicotine dependency and this next-generation reform will cease any form of enticement.”

– With NCA NewsWire

Originally published as ‘Vape wall’: Disturbing scene on busy Melbourne freeway