Colchester completes stage one of chewing gum clean-up

The Colchester Council initiative, aimed at removing chewing gum, was funded by a £27,461 grant from the Chewing Gum Task Force.

It has focused on improving the cleanliness of North Station Road, Sheepen Road, Middleborough Road, and Sheepen Place.

In total, more than 34,700 square feet of street, equivalent to the size of 35 average UK homes, has been cleaned.

Colchester councillor responsible for waste, Martin Goss, said: "The Colchester Council neighbourhoods team have done a fantastic job in securing this funding and now cleaning the streets of Colchester.

"It’s important that we continue to tackle littering and keep the city we live and work in clean.

"Gum littering is a disgrace and there is no excuse for it.

"Not only is it unsightly, but it harms the environment and the wildlife we share our city with.

"So please, put your gum in the nearest bin – it does not belong on the floor."

The council was one of 54 local authorities across the country to secure funding from the task force, which is in its third year of operations, to tackle the issue of gum littering.

The task force is funded by major gum manufacturers, including Mars Wrigley and Perfetti Van Melle, with a total investment of up to £10 million over five years.

According to Keep Britain Tidy, the annual clean-up cost of chewing gum for UK councils is around £7 million, with around 77 per cent of England’s streets and 99 per cent of retail sites stained with gum.

Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, chief executive of Keep Britain Tidy, said: "Thankfully, the majority of people who chew gum dispose of it responsibly.

"But for those who don’t, cleaning gum and the resulting staining off our pavements costs councils millions of pounds every year."

Participating councils last year achieved reductions in gum littering of up to 60 per cent in the first two months by combining targeted street cleaning with specially designed signage encouraging residents to bin their gum.