Keeping cigarette butts and chewing gum off our streets
We want to encourage everyone to play their part and keep our town clean and tidy, as well as keep litter out of street drains which flow into the rivers and the sea. To do this, we have launched two new campaigns.
#BinTheButt and ballot bins
The #BinTheButt campaign is being used to tackle the issue of cigarette related litter around the town.
Cigarette butts are the most commonly dropped form of litter in the country. They contain plastic and chemicals that are highly toxic to both wildlife and marine life and a lot of this type of litter will enter the local watercourse and eventually make its way to our oceans.
As well as running Keep Britain Tidy's #BinTheButt campaign, we have installed two ballot yellow bins in the town centre in hot spot areas, one on the high street outside John Lewis and another bin at the Royal Well bus station.
Councillor Iain Dobie and Charlie Raglan of Cheltenham Town FC with one of the ballot bins for cigarette butts
#BinYourGum
The #BinYourGum campaign aims to tackle the issue of dropped chewing gum as part of the national tackling gum littering campaign (developed by Behaviour Change in partnership with Mars Wrigley).
In the town, dropped chewing gum makes the streets look untidy; over time the pavements are left with many black marks and clearing these takes a lot of time and money.
Throwing chewing gum on the floor can also end up in the watercourse, but it can also be eaten by local wildlife which could result in severely sick animals.
When you are finished with your gum use a nearby bin or use a tissue or piece of paper to contain the gum to dispose of later.
We are delighted that Cheltenham Town FC are supporting us with both campaigns. Together we can all play our part by disposing of our waste correctly and keeping our town looking clean, tidy and something to be proud of.