Monaco Zero Mégot returns for its 16th year of free pocket ashtrays
By Zak Jackson, MonacoViews Editorial
The Mairie de Monaco is distributing free pocket ashtrays across the Principality again this summer, with La Condamine market added as a new collection point.
Now in its 16th edition, the Mairie de Monaco's 'Monaco Zéro Mégot' campaign is back for summer 2026, offering residents and visitors free pocket ashtrays to curb cigarette butt littering on the Principality's streets and shoreline. A single cigarette filter, the initiative reminds us, can contaminate up to 500 litres of water.
This year, La Condamine market joins the existing network of distribution points, making it easier for those living on the west side of the Rock to pick up a pocket ashtray during their regular shop. The campaign combines the free hardware with on-the-ground prevention messaging aimed at changing habits rather than simply enforcing fines.
The timing is deliberate. Summer brings a sharp rise in foot traffic along the port, the beaches and the public gardens, and with it a corresponding spike in discarded butts. The Mairie's campaign treats the problem as a public health and environmental issue, not merely an aesthetic one, which is why it has continued to run every year since its launch.