Gum litter on Colchester’s streets reduces

Date issued: 16 September 2019

Gum litter blighting Colchester’s pavements has reduced, thanks to initiatives funded by the Better Colchester campaign.

Following an extended programme of town centre cleaning, the introduction of Gumdrop bins and the Gum Litter Blows marketing campaign, the amount of gum litter in some areas of town has reduced by as much as 81%.

Two gum litter counts, one conducted in October 2018, before the activity began, and one in September 2019 have shown excellent results.

Area	October 2018	September 2019
Shoe Zone to Preto (High Street) - 25m	166 pieces of gum	30 pieces of gum (area cleaned regularly)
Sixth Form Entrance to 57 (North Hill) - 25m	627 pieces of gum	313 pieces of gum
Costa to Bet Fred / Odeon (Head Street) - 25m	436 pieces of gum	298 pieces of gum
Subway to Silk Road (Queen Street) - 25m	392 pieces of gum	255 pieces of gum
Argos to Beresfords both sides (Long Wyre Street) - 25m	574 pieces of gum	275 pieces of gum
Salvation Army to Red Lion Books (High Street) - 25m	213 pieces of gum	20 pieces of gum (area cleaned regularly)

Cllr Martin Goss, Portfolio Holder for Waste, Environment and Transportation said “These figures are amazing and I am very proud that, together with residents and visitors to our town, we have made such a positive difference to the way our pavements look.

“Gum litter is a disgrace and there is no need for it now that we have special Gumdrop bins around the town centre. We can all work together to take pride in Colchester and continue to challenge and educate anyone who drops any kind of litter, for a Better Colchester”.

The first batch of Gumdrop bins inserts sent back to Gumdrop for recycling weighed in at 11.14kgs.