Charity Keep Britain Tidy estimates 260 million vapes are thrown away in the UK every year, wasting resources such as lithium.
It is dangerous to discard them in a general waste bin, as their batteries can cause fires when crushed in bin lorries or recycling centres.
Under Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations, vendors of vapes must offer a service for customers to return vapes for recycling.
However, Miki finds outlets rarely supply the correct bins.
“It’s a hassle for them, they don’t want to do it,” he says.
“They’re going to have to pay for the recycling. They’ve also got to do it through a reputable company.”
The campaigner says he visited more than 40 shops over the weekend to speak to staff about the recycling regulations.
“At first they just look at you as though you’re a little bit crazy,” he says.
“Then you start explaining what they need to do and that they’ve had enough time to do it, then you get different reactions.
“Some of them say ‘yeah, okay, okay’, other ones have been quite aggressive in their response.
“They certainly don’t feel as though I’m doing them a favour.”