Updated Wednesday 18th January 2006
Council Joins Chewing Gum Campaign

East Herts District Council has joined with 19 other local authorities to fight the scourge of discarded chewing gum.

The Council has shown its public support for the campaign with a full-page advert in last Monday's Guardian newspaper.

Chewing gum staining is a blight to many of our town centre pavement surfaces, the council said in a press release.

Malcolm Alexander, Executive member with responsibility for environmental management, said: "This year East Herts has piloted 'street washing' in Hertford town centre, to remove grime and staining from the most heavily used areas and we plan to expand this to the other town centres and some of the heavily used shopping parades next year".

"The advert, which has received national radio and TV coverage, states that it costs 3p to buy a stick of gum, but 10p to clean it up. This is a costly exercise and we need to do more both locally and nationally to discourage people from dropping gum and confectionery manufacturers to produce products which are easier to remove."

Over the next year East Herts will be developing campaigns, in partnership with other local authorities, to raise awareness among residents, and particularly young people, to discourage this anti-social behaviour. The council will also be purchasing new equipment, which will allow street washing to be more cost effective.