Tombstone: Buried in Butts

What a treat to visit Tombstone, AZ,  the site of so many old west legends. The pedestrian-only streets look and are filled with people dressed as they were in the 1800's. It's charming and certainly takes you back in time.

As I walked around a town that is supported by tourist dollars and strives to be historically accurate, I was shocked to see so many

cigarette butts. I'm sure back in the day those ruff 'n tuff Marlboro guys pitched their butts, but back then cigarettes were biodegradable and you wouldn't see plastic filters laying around as litter for months. Like Tombstone, these butts are "too tough to die."

I got to thinking what a great opportunity Tombstone has to be tourist-tidy and educate about the problems of litter, especially toxic cigarette butts. I envision someone in western garb, good-naturedly interacting with tourists and townsfolk with a *vintage* sign reading:

Littering is illegal.

(Cigarette butts are litter.)

Violators will be shot on site.

Using the wild west theme there are lots of ideas to make this light-hearted and fun, yet informational.

Tombstone could have clearly marked ashtray/butt collection bins that look like jails with plexi containers to collect the butts. Sign could read:  Wanted: Dead or Alive. Cigarette butts.

Those butts could be sold  or recycled / upcycled at http://innovagreensystems.com/

Considering the implication of fire hazard with pitched butts on the wooden sidewalks and Tombstone's State of Water Emergency I'd think they'd have good reason to prevent cigarette butt litter. What do you think?