Beginning on December 31, 2010, members of the United States Navy will no longer be able to smoke while aboard submarines. Approximately 35 to 40 percent of the 13,000 sailors currently serving on the Navy’s 71 submarines are smokers.
A study done in 2009 revealed that non-smoking individuals aboard naval ships were being negatively impacted by the smoking habits of their fellow sailors. Specifically, one article states that this study showed that the current method of using air scrubbers to remove the smoke was still leaving an “unacceptable level of secondhand smoke in the atmospheres of submerged submarines.”
According to Lt. Commander Mark Jones, “aggressive smoking cessation programs” will be available for sailors who need assistance quitting. Previously, smoking had been limited to certain areas of the submarines. The individual commanders will have the ability to permit or ban smoking on deck.
In one article, Capt. Mark Michaud, Submarine Force Atlantic surgeon said “What we want to discourage is smokers turning to alternative methods of tobacco use such as chewing tobacco.” They plan to do this by including education as a key component of their cessation programs.
Considering the need for these men and women to be in the best physical shape possible, I think this is a commendable decision. Naval members are not required to be non-smokers, they simply will not be able to smoke while aboard submarines (granted, this could be for an extended period of time). Many states now ban smoking in restaurants, bars, and the work place. This is another step in preventing unnecessary exposure to second hand smoke.
This article contains further details of this new decision.
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