The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors looked at restricting e-cigarette use on July 7. It considered a ban on e-cigarette use in public spaces such as county offices, outdoor spaces, or car parks.
Buellton, Goleta, Lompoc, Santa Maria, Solvang, and Carpenteria have already moved to restrict e-cigarette use in public spaces. The county’s tobacco ordinance does much of the same, but so far doesn’t target e-cigs specifically.
Electronic cigarettes, which look like props from the set of Blade Runner, are sometimes marketed as a way to stop smoking traditional cigarettes. They provide two things that other ways to quit, such as nicotine patches, don’t—sensory stimulation, through the vapor that they produce, and the feeling of “cigarette manipulation,” through the pen-like devices out of which the vapor is smoked. Research has shown this imitation of cigarette smoking rituals can be an important component in stopping those habits.
The data is still hazy on the various health risks associated with e-cigs, but several studies have demonstrated that the pens aren’t completely safe. The FDA has found that some e-cig products still contain toxins and carcinogens. And, of course, those who are around e-cig users could be exposed, through second-hand vapor, to those same health risks. So far, the law is playing catch-up with controlling these risks.
E-cigarette use has skyrocketed since the pens were first introduced. The California Healthy Kids Survey indicates that e-cig use has risen considerably in Santa Barbara County for youth: Data from the fall of 2014 showed a jump in the number of ninth and 11th graders who had used an e-cigarette—a jump of more than 20 percent, for both categories, in the period of just two years.
Another potential ban on the July 7 agenda was prohibiting downhill skateboarding on certain steep roads, at the request of the CHP. Of specific concern is skating on remote roads high in the Santa Ynez Mountain, including San Marcos and Gibraltar roads, where longboarders can bomb at high speeds for long distances.
On June 8, as a KEYT broadcast available on YouTube shows, a skateboarder coming down Gibraltar Road crashed head-on into a truck and was hospitalized. The woman was wearing a helmet with a full face guard but was going fast enough that it went flying during the accident.
Gibraltar Road is attractive to skateboarders for more than the beautiful views it offers. It features hairpin turns and was resurfaced just this year.
The CHP isn’t happy about that. They sent a letter to the Board of Supervisors last November after two skateboarders coming down San Marcos Road smashed into a car. One, according to the CHP’s letter, had his front teeth knocked out.
Los Angeles County has a ban in place for skateboarding down roads with a grade higher than 3 percent. The ordinance under consideration by the county doesn’t target specific grades, it amends an existing ordinance to prohibit skateboarding on public roads with posted notices. It also specifically prohibits skateboarding on San Marcos, Gibraltar, and Painted Cave roads.
The board, over the objections of several members of the downhill skateboarding community, voted 4-1 for the ban, with Steve Lavagnino dissenting. The e-cig measure passed 5-0.
This article appears in Jul 9-16, 2015.
