On Monday, New York City took its smoking ban a notch higher by including beaches and parks in the list of areas within the city where smoking is prohibited. This is still a part of the city mayor’s campaign to encourage healthy habits.
The ban is an addition to the 2003 ban on cigarette smoking in bars and restaurants. The city wants to decrease the health risks posed by second-hand smoking.
Police officers will not be the ones to enforce the law but rather the 200 park personnel watching over a total of 29,000 acres of beaches and park land. People caught smoking in those areas will have to pay a fine amounting to $50; however, the city is hoping that it will generally become a self-imposed law.
Thomas Farley, New York City Health Commissioner, said that they do not want people who want to enjoy the fresh air of parks and beaches be exposed to harmful chemicals released by cigarette smokers. Palonia Jourdain, a New Yorker who often brings her nephew to the park, said she is delighted with the ban.
The City Council of New York voted to broaden the smoking prohibitions in New York last February. Chicago and Los Angeles already have similar smoking bans in place.
The people of New York may still smoke in parking lots, streets, sidewalks, and their private homes. Landlords, however, have the discretion to impose their own smoking bans.
Health officials of the city said that cigarette smoking kills at least 7,000 New York City residents in merely a year.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg has also banned trans fats in foods served in restaurants. Moreover, he required all restaurants show calorie counts on their menus. These are all part of his campaign to a healthier New York.
The Chief Executive Officer of Philip Morris International, one of the leading makers of cigarettes, told a nurse working with cancer patients on Wednesday that although cigarette smoking is addictive, it is not that hard to quit.
