The Gum Litter Taskforce (GLT) took to the streets of Kilkenny today as a part of its summer roadshow. 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. 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. READ MORE ECO NEWS HERE 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 o.
