Preventing chewing gum litter
Scots love chewing gum. We spend £28.6 million on the stuff every year.
But used gum causes a huge litter problem.
Discarded chewing gum never breaks down. It makes our towns and cities look grubby, harms our wildlife and uses up a hefty chunk of our public budgets – on average, each bit of gum costs only 3p to buy, but £1.50 per square metre to clean up.
Letting people know the extent of the problem is a good place to start.
Many gum-lovers don’t know that they can be fined for littering gum. If they did, it’s likely they’d change their behaviour.
‘Be a binner, not a sinner’
In 2008, the Borough of Poole enlisted the help of a gum-like mascot to let people know that dropping even a single piece of gum could earn them a £75 fine. They also handed out books of chewing gum disposal paper to help people stay on the right side of the rules.
This activity, which reduced chewing gum litter by 20%, shows that a tough message can be delivered in a friendly way.
‘Bin it’
The Chewing Gum Action Group (CGAG) is made up of authorities, environmental groups and chewing gum manufacturers. They tackle chewing gum litter with a communications-led approach, delivering the right blend of big thinking and local engagement.
Each year CGAG partners with a different group of local authorities to run themed ‘Bin It’ communications. Their 2015 campaign, ‘Bin It Your Way’, managed a 38% average reduction of dropped gum in participating areas – including the North Highland Council region.