Located in the heart of downtown Reims, as an extension of the Promenades, the Patte d’Oie park hosts a pretty kiosk, several water points, games for children, abundant vegetation and, for the past few days, bins located at the entrance, which read: “Tobacco-free park”.
After the playgrounds, it is now in the entirety of this 3.7-hectare green space that smoking and “vaping” are prohibited. The inauguration of this tobacco-free zone took place on the sidelines of the National General Assembly of the League against Cancer, organized in Reims on June 26 and 27, the city’s partner in this initiative. The first for a municipal park.
“Without turning Reims into a city of prohibition”
“The choice of this park is not insignificant, because it is frequented by many families and children, which makes the initiative all the more significant, explains the communications department of the city of Reims. The extension of this initiative to the Patte d’Oie park aims to raise awareness among residents about the consequences of smoking and to denormalize its use, without transforming Reims into a city of prohibition.”
The city has already committed to a similar approach around four schools, where cigarettes are prohibited within a 50-meter radius. It announces that “from November 2024, 20 new municipal elementary schools will be labeled smoke-free spaces” and aims to extend the deposit to the city’s 49 establishments by 2026. The stated objective is to protect children from passive smoking and its harmful consequences for health, to denormalize cigarette use, particularly among the youngest, and to protect the environment by preventing cigarette butts from being abandoned around schools. Committed alongside communities throughout France, the Ligue contre le cancer has helped to label more than 7,000 smoke-free spaces in 73 departments. It points out that smoking causes 75,000 deaths in France each year, or 13% of all deaths.
