Should Disposable Vapes Be Returnable in Michigan Just Like Bottles?

No doubt you've seen them littering the streets and sidewalks.

Much like cigarette butts, disposable vapes-- both cannabis and nicotine-- are creating a toxic waste crisis across Michigan. According to the Detroit Metro Times,

Get our free mobile app

In February 2025 alone, Michigan’s recreational cannabis market sold more than $45 million in vape products, or roughly 10,900 pounds of cannabis oil.

While these products are cheap, portable, and discrete these single-use devices are designed to have short lifespans; some vapes don't even include a charging port. So, once these disposable pens and vapes eventually stop working, where do they go?

Unfortunately, there's no good answer.

As the Detroit Metro Times explains these mass-produced devices are made cheaply and house toxic chemicals from lithium batteries and microplastics. In fact, despite federal regulations classifying them as hazardous waste, " it’s rare to find packaging that warns against throwing disposable vapes in the garbage."

So, technically you can't throw them away and there's currently no recycling program.

While some dispensaries do offer a "Doob Tube" recycling program for those little plastic containers, why can't the same service be offered for disposable vapes? Michigan vape users are asking the same thing on the platform Reddit and have come to the conclusion: We need a disposable vape deposit.

We could start by forcing the companies that make these - and their nicotine counterparts - to actually recycle the products when they’re finished. Every store that sells them should have a bin to drop the old ones for recycling. - u/Tsiatk0

• "I'd absolutely support this. I think $1 would make it a lot more effective. It would be inconvenient and/or costly for retailers, manufacturers, and customers, just as it is with can/bottle deposits, but it seems like an appropriately targeted solution to a problem." - u/bobi2393

• "I’d pay a deposit. I pay a deposit on a few other things, why not disposable vapes? I’m an avid pot smoker and I think this is a great idea!" - u/baconadelight

• "$10 deposit for returning. Need to establish infrastructure that will actually recycle the material first though. America sucks at recycling and needs to invest in this." -u/Comprehensive_Two285