Chewing gum clean-up 'costs Bristol City Council £38k'
Cleaning chewing gum off the streets of Bristol is costing the city council more than £38,000 a year.
A campaign starts on Monday to raise awareness of the problem and warns offenders they face £75 penalty fines.
A Bristol City Council spokesman said in Broadmead shopping centre alone some 4,400 pieces were removed each week.
"Chewing gum... is difficult to clean and a nuisance for anyone who gets it stuck to them," he said.
A six-foot-tall chewing gum character will be handing out paper packs for people to dispose of their used gum in and the Broadmead gum removal crew will also be there, demonstrating how they get rid of the gum.
A similar campaign, run in 2007, was credited with a reduction of gum litter by 38%.