The Gum Litter Taskforce (GLT) took to the streets of Sligo today, as a part of its summer roadshow.
Roadshow in Sligo highlights gum littering issue on our streets
Áine O'Loughlen Environmental Awareness Officer, Sligo County Council, Mayor Councillor Tom MacSharry Sligo County Council, Councillor Marie Casserly Sligo County Council, Finbar Filan Sligo Tidy Towns Chairman welcoming the Gum Litter Taskforce to Sligo
The interactive Roadshow works with local authorities and communities across the country to carry out fun and engaging education and awareness initiatives that demonstrate the proper means of gum disposal and raise awareness of the environmental and fiscal impacts of gum litter.
Welcoming the roadshow to Sligo, Mayor Cllr Tom MacSharry said:
"I am thrilled to welcome back the Gum Litter Taskforce to Sligo, showcasing the positive impact of responsible gum disposal through their roadshow. This campaign has significantly reduced gum litter on our streets, emphasising the importance of proper disposal habits.
"The success of this initiative demonstrates our community's commitment to protecting our environment. Let's continue to educate and inspire positive changes in gum disposal habits for a cleaner, more sustainable future in Sligo."
Now in its seventeenth year, the campaign is a collaboration between Food Drink Ireland, the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications, the chewing gum industry, and local authorities.
One in seven people continue to drop their gum on the ground, according to new findings from the Gum Litter Taskforce (GLT), the national awareness campaign which aims to make gum litter an issue of the past. This accounts for 19% of men and 9% of women, showing a higher tendency in men to not properly dispose of their gum.
Attitudes towards gum litter continue to change, as children are educated on the negative environmental and fiscal impacts of gum litter. The GLT 2023 campaign had a positive impact on both attitudes and behaviour regarding gum disposal, with a 5% increase in those reporting ‘always’ or ‘usually’ putting their chewed gum in the bin, bringing the figure to a record high of 92%. The latest results of the National Litter Pollution Monitoring report (2022) also reflect this behavioural change, showing a continuous decline of percentage of gum as a proportion of litter at 8.6%.
The GLT research also found that the biggest deterrent of gum litter is peer pressure, however 1 in 4 of state they have changed their behaviour as a result of the educational messaging from the Bin-it campaign.
The findings highlight the continued impact of the GLT, a joint initiative of the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications, Food Drink Ireland, and the chewing gum industry, which has played a key role in promoting proper gum litter disposal, since its launch in 2007.
The GLT campaign travels across the country, working with local authorities to host its Summer Roadshow, which promotes responsible gum disposal by highlighting the environmental impacts of gum and general litter. This is supplemented by the ‘Bin It!’ school roadshow and a social media campaign to target 16–24-year-olds.
A further positive impact of the campaign is evident from the 16% of young people who reported having stopped the habit of ‘dropping or spitting’ gum recently post campaign.