Perth and Kinross has tooled up to tackle the chewing gum problem that blights streets.
Streets across the region including prime thoroughfares such as Perth High Street are littered with discarded gum, some of which has scarred pavements for years.
With the eyes of the world to fall upon Perth and Kinross during the Ryder Cup, offering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to market the area, it has been decided that now is the time to act.
Three gum removal machines have been bought at a cost of £9,000 to deal with the sticky issue.
The council has long been a pioneer in attempts to tackle the issue.
In 2005, it even moved to demand of then Chancellor Gordon Brown that a levy be imposed upon chewing gum manufacturers to help pay for the cleaning of streets.
That led to a gum summit in London, attended by politicians, councils and chewing gum manufacturers, but no resolution.
Littering of all kinds is said to cost Perth and Kinross in the region of £2 million a year, with thousands of tonnes of street-sweeping debris collected, much of it removed from the streets of Perth.
In the past the council has paid for specialist firms to visit communities to address specific problem areas.
The new battery-powered machines work by mixing a biodegradable and a harmless chemical with hot steam, which breaks down the gum and makes it possible to then brush it away.
Locals undertaking community service have been enlisted to provide the manpower.
The machines saw action on the streets of Perth’s Letham area on Friday but will be available to communities across the region.
Councillor Callum Gillies said: “Within my constituency, the main place where gum is discarded appears to be outside shops.
“Here in Rannoch Road we can now deal with the problem very efficiently thanks to the new machines.
“These measures are being taken because, unfortunately, the used gum on this pavement isn’t going to disappear of its own accord as it is not biodegradable.
“The gum is unsightly and gives the wrong impression of Letham and other affected parts of Perth and Kinross.
“Moreover, the gum can also pose a threat to birds that can be killed by trying to digest it, as well as disrupt bee behaviour, due to the chemicals used in it.”
Environment convener Alan Grant added: “The investment made in these machines will allow us to eradicate the problem swiftly and ensure Perth and Kinross continues to be a place where people want to live, work and visit, especially when the eyes of the world are upon us during the Ryder Cup.”
Carole Noble, head of environmental services at the independent charity Keep Scotland Beautiful, said that chewing gum discarded irresponsibly was a national problem that had an impact on the cleanliness of towns and cities across the country.
“This investment from Perth and Kinross Council is a major step forward in local environmental quality,” she went on.
“However, we need to change the attitudes that see huge volumes of chewing gum carelessly discarded every day, when it could easily and responsibly be binned.
“Our Clean Up Scotland Campaign is leading the fight to change attitudes and stop this sticky problem at source.”
Video by Kirsty Topping