Ashford welcomes Local Vape Action project

KentOnline / KMTV

Following the lead of Tunbridge Wells, the Local Vape Action project has been brought to Ashford. This means that vape shops in the area will be partnering with the project.   The initiative aims to tackle illegal vapes, recycling requirements and preventing children being sold the product.   Kristin Hawthorne went to the launch event to find out more...

Transcript

00:00Can you tell which of these vapes are illegal? Well the problem is is that many

00:04people can't and this is just one of the reasons why a local vape action project

00:08has been brought to Ashford following its initial appearance in Tunbridge

00:11Wells back in September. This board was created by the LVA to display all the

00:16different ways nicotine can be delivered. Some of the items on the board are legal

00:19and some of them are illegal. This was done to showcase how difficult it can be

00:23to tell the difference. So the LVA is a collaboration between partners including

00:29the IBVTA the Independent British Vape Trade Association and it's about

00:33bringing industry and partners together to promote responsible retailing for vapes.

00:39So the whole point about responsible retailing is a vape is a legal product

00:43okay obviously we know that there are illegal products out there so as a

00:47service if we find illegal vapes we'll remove them but if you're an adult and

00:51you're looking to try and stop smoking it's a really good product to help you

00:54do that so if we can support that in the local economy and support retail

00:59is to get that bit right that's what we're here to do. The initiative aims to

01:02tackle underage sales, illegal vapes and ensuring that businesses comply with

01:07recycling requirements of the devices. To ensure that the business you're going to

01:11is aligning with these rules a sticker will be displayed in the window. So part

01:16of the LVA by making a community-based issue is people can access that

01:21information and if that then enables those parents to understand what harm might

01:25be being caused then hopefully that will also have a positive impact and stop

01:29people supplying vapes to people underage. But in a world of bright colors, images and

01:34interesting flavors, what vapes are actually legal? The vapes from the 1st of

01:38June must have a rechargeable battery, they must have either a refillable tank

01:45for the liquid or a pod that you can swap on and off and then the coil and

01:49warding has also got to be replaced so that's about the environmental side of it. By

01:53raising awareness amongst retailers and the community, Ashford may soon be better

01:57equipped to deal with underage access to vapes and helping adults to make

02:01healthier choices. Kristen Hawthorne for ChemTV in Ashford.

Category

Transcript

Recommended