High footfall areas of Harrogate and Skipton are set to be rid of chewing gum as more funding for specialist equipment has been announced.
For the third year running, we have received the maximum amount of £27,500 from the Government’s national Chewing Gum Task Force.
The funding was set up to clean gum off pavements and prevent it from being littered in the first place.
Hotspot areas across Harrogate and Skipton will be identified in a bid to support our aim of providing a clean, environmentally sustainable, and attractive place to live, work and visit.
In previous years, the funding has been used in Malton, Northallerton, Scarborough and Selby.
Executive member for managing our environment, Cllr Richard Foster, said: “It is testament to the hard work of our waste and street scene teams that they have secured the maximum amount of funding for the third year running.
“The money has already been put to great use in other towns across the county, with new equipment being used to rid the streets of chewing gum.
“Although most people dispose of their gum responsibly, it continues to spoil the appearance of high footfall areas and well-used public spaces.
“This additional funding will be used to expand our efforts and invest in more specialist equipment which can remove even the most stubborn gum.
“We are committed to keeping our town centres clean and welcoming for residents and visitors alike.”
The Chewing Gum Task Force grant scheme was established by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and is run by environmental charity, Keep Britain Tidy.
It is open to councils across the UK which aim to clean up gum in their area and invest in long-term behaviour change to prevent gum from being dropped in the first place.
We are one of 50 local authorities across the country to have successfully applied for the funding.
In the past four years, the Task Force has awarded grants worth £6.46 million, which has funded the cleaning of more than 4.15 million square metres of pavements, and reduced gum littering of up to 86 per cent in funded areas.