Some of Bradford’s most popular city centre streets have undergone a deep clean to remove gum as part of a scheme ran by ‘Keep Britain Tidy’.
A £26,000 grant from the National Chewing Gum Task Force, ran by the Keep Britain Tidy inivitaive, allowed for workers to clean Darley Street, Market Street, Broadway, and surrounding areas.
Approximately 9,450m2 of pavements and roads were cleaned overnight throughout September and October.
Councillor Sarah Ferriby, Portfolio Holder for Healthy People and Places at Bradford City Council, said: “It’s great to see these streets clear of gum and I hope this initiative will have longer term impacts on how people dispose of chewing gum.”
An awarness campaign has since been launched to prevent further gum litering by members of the public, and new sinage will continue to go up in prominent places across the city over the next few weeks.
Bradford was one of 52 councils across the country who succesfully applied for funding. The Task Force is funded by major gum manufacturers including Mars Wrigley and Perfetti Van Melle, with an investment of up to £10 million spread over five years.
Many residents have reacted positively to the news, welcoming similar schemes which may happen in the future. Eileen Osbourne, 89, from Bradford, said: “I’ve seen the pictures and the pavement looks great now. I think it’s really good when town gets cleaned up like this and I hope we get similar in the future.”
The annual clean-up cost of chewing gum for councils in the UK is believed to be around £7 million, and it is thought that around 77% of Britain’s streets are stained with gum.
A spokesperson for Keep Britain Tidy said: “Chewing gum continues to be an unsightly form of litter in our public spaces – though thankfully the scheme is leading to significant reductions.
“People need to remember that disposing irresponsibly of their gum causes harm to our environment as it takes years to decompose naturally – and, ultimately, costs the public purse to clean it up.”