The Tasmanian devil was once unstoppable.

It tore through boulders and buzzed through trees and ripped up the forest floor in its swirling pursuit of a (cartoon) rabbit.

Now the real-world species clings to the brink of extinction, after being decimated by a rapidly spreading contagious cancer.

Perhaps the life-and-death struggle of their toughest residents is making officials in Tasmania feel vulnerable and willing to go to extremes to stop all forms of cancer -- at least among the human population.

If legislation is approved, the Australian state would become the first western jurisdiction to ban smoking among an entire generation.

As it is now, the island community has Australia's highest smoking rates, with one in four young people lighting up.

The proposal calls for those born after the year 2000 to never be allowed to buy a pack of smokes.

The proposal by Tasmanian independent MP Ivan Dean seems to have the support of the government, as they hope to create the first smoke-free generation -- something local retailers say won't likely happen by law alone.

An official with the Australian Retailers Association warned the move could create a nanny state, and opposition MPs wonder aloud if 50 lashes are next on the health agenda.

But Dean says current laws that allow smoking at 18 years old don't make a lot of sense.

He believes the rules are confusing to young people.

"It's bad for you before you become an adult," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"But once you become an adult, the law is there and you can smoke -- what kind of message is that sending?"

A ban, which must now be backed by the lower house of government, could be introduced by 2018, meaning those born after 2000 would never be allowed to buy cigarettes in Tasmania.

The state's health minister, Michelle O'Byrne, has signalled support for the move, saying shop owners are already prohibited from selling the product to customers of a certain age.

"Every year, it would just get that little bit older," O'Byrne said.

Dean, a former soldier and police officer, says it would not stop adults who currently smoke from buying cigarettes, so should solve more problems than it would create.

As for the Tasmanian devils, their time seems close to an end if current last-minute conservation efforts aren't effective.

Which means, for them, it might be as good a time as ever to smoke 'em if they got 'em.