Nearly 1,000 people have worked hard for about 18 days to remove chewing gum wads discarded by residents and visitors in Tian'anmen Square, a symbol of China's capital and one of the most important tourist destinations in the city.

It is estimated that there were 600,000 lumps of discarded chewing gum sticking onto the ground around the 400,000-sq. m square.

According to sources from a cleaning company under the Management Committee of Tian'anmen Square, the thoughtlessness of gum spitting residents and tourists cost the company about 1.1 yuan (US$0.133) for each piece of chewing gum removed. Apart from expenditure for water and labor, the cost also includes an imported special cleaning agent and imported equipment.

Discarded chewing gum is also a headache in other cities around the world, some of which impose a variety of penalties on those caught in the act.

Citizens of Beijing are encouraged to make proposals on how to prevent people from discarding chewing gum onto the streets and other areas in the city, according to the local Beijing Youth Daily.

(Xinhua News Agency October 16, 2002)