A new study shows usage of illegal tobacco across the province is on the rise.

A study commissioned by the Ontario Convenience Stores Association examined discarded cigarette butts at 136 sites between October and November 2013.

The study showed illegal tobacco usage was at 21 per cent throughout Ontario. In Windsor, the cigarettes collected from the former Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital found illegal tobacco usage to be at 46.2 per cent, the highest of all location involved.

 “Looking at the figures, what’s shocking is the high use of contraband tobacco at local high schools and health care facilities,” says Dave Bryans, CEO of the OCSA. “These are places where no tobacco should be present, whatsoever.”

The second highest rate was found at the Eastwood Collegiate Institute in the Kitchener-Cambridge area at 40.6 per cent.