NORTH Ayrshire Council’s Streetscene Environmental Enforcement Team is urging local residents to stub out littering on some of North Ayrshire’s most cigarette and gum-strewn streets.

The team has issued the call in a bid to crackdown on the amount of cigarette butts and chewing gum littering North Ayrshire’s busy town centres.

Joining local authorities across the UK, the team has signed up to the ‘Chewing Gum Action Group’ by Keep Britain Tidy. They have also received support for the campaign in the form of funding and promotional material from Zero Waste Scotland, Scotland’s leading environmental body.

Over th next few weeks, they will be patrolling North Ayrshire’s town centres, speaking to members of the public and visiting local businesses to make them aware of the campaign.

One of the locations targeted in the team’s clear-up efforts is Kilwinning Main Street.

And Councillor Jim Montgomerie, Cabinet Member for Place, joined them last week in Kilwinning to raise awareness of the issue.

He said: “It’s a real shame to see many of North Ayrshire’s most popular areas being tarnished by the actions of just a few.

“With ample bins available for smokers to properly dispose of their cigarettes, there’s really no excuse for people to be shamelessly dropping them onto the ground, leaving them for others to pick up. The same applies to those chewing gum.

“I hope members of our communities support us in this drive and ask people to be mindful of others by disposing of their cigarettes and chewing gum correctly.”

Throwing cigarette butts and used chewing gum onto the ground is treated as littering and anyone found doing so could face a fixed penalty of £80 from the Council’s Streetscene Environmental Enforcement Officers.

If you would like to report any streets affected by cigarette litter or discarded gum, contact the Council on 01294 310000.