UW to remove all designated smoking areas by May 1
| April 10, 2025
A “Designated Smoking Area” sign stands next to a large black ashtray on a grassy patch near the sidewalk at UW, offering one of the campus’s designated smoking areas, with trees and parked vehicles visible in the background.
A "Designated Smoking Area" sign stands next to a large black ashtray on a grassy patch near the sidewalk at UW, offering one of the campus's designated smoking areas, with trees and parked vehicles visible in the background.
The next phase of UW’s transition towards a smoke-free campus will begin on May 1, with the removal of all designated smoking areas (DSAs) on campus. This next step applies to all UW campuses (Waterloo, Kitchener, Cambridge, and Stratford). All forms of smoking will now be banned on campus, such as tobacco, cannabis, and other products producing vapour or smoke. Exceptions are made for Indigenous ceremonies or traditions, or to those with medical accommodations.
After announcing the smoke-free campus initiative last June, the university announced that DSAs would be made available on campus for a “transition period” that would last from July 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025. With May 1 marking the end of this period, UW will have entered the final phase of its smoke-free campus initiative. In yesterday’s daily bulletin, the university stated that it will “focus on education and support for those wishing to stop smoking.”
Visit the smoke-free Waterloo website for more information and resources.
