Additional funding to tackle chewing gum litter

Dundee City Council has successfully bid for the maximum grant available from Keep Britain Tidy to introduce new measures to tackle chewing gum in the city centre.

Keep Britain Tidy’s Chewing Gum Task Force Grant scheme is funded by companies who produce chewing gum, with Dundee receiving £27,500 this year.

The external funding is ring-fenced for the purchase of cleaning equipment and street cleansing activities to focus on historic gum staining and tackle behaviour change to prevent gum littering.

Climate, Environment & Biodiversity Convener Cllr Heather Anderson said: “This additional funding to focus on tackling chewing gum litter in the city is welcomed.

“The new machinery will add another method to our ability to respond to chewing gum litter which remains a persistent problem for most local authorities. This specific and targeted approach has proven to work and will help have a positive effect to our public realm.”

Fair Work, Economic Growth & Infrastructure Convener Cllr Steven Rome said: “This scheme will see an initial focus on our city centre area. Dundee City Centre is an attractive destination, and cleanliness and appearance play an important role in that.

“The Council’s services will be taking steps to target chewing gum litter. We ask that members of the public make their task as easy as possible by disposing of their chewing gum waste appropriately.”

Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, Keep Britain Tidy’s chief executive, said: “Chewing gum litter is highly visible on our high streets and is both difficult and expensive to clean up, so the support for councils provided by the Chewing Gum Task Force and the gum manufacturers is very welcome.

“However, once the gum has been cleaned up, it is vital to remind the public that when it comes to litter, whether it’s gum or anything else, there is only one place it should be – in the bin – and that is why the behaviour change element of the task force’s work is so important.”

The Chewing Gum Task Force Grant scheme is now in its third year with Dundee City joining 53 other UK local authorities in receiving funding.

Estimates suggest the annual clean-up cost of chewing gum for councils in the UK is around £7 million.

In its second year, the taskforce awarded 55 councils a total of £1.56 million to help clean an estimated 440,000 m2 of pavement by combining targeted street cleaning with specially designed signage to encourage people to bin their gum. Participating councils saw reductions in gum littering of up to 60% in the first two months.