BOLTON is investigating how it can beat a sticky problem - chewing gum discarded on the streets.

The problem is so extensive that the council says it cannot afford to clean it up.

Gum costs 3p a stick to buy, but costs local authorities 10p to prise each piece off pavements.

Twenty councils elsewhere in the country have have banded together to ask for financial help in dealing with the problem, including Blackburn with Darwen Council.

Bolton Council has not joined the campaign as it is currently researching the extent of the problem to form a plan for a future clean-up.

There are two main options: the gum can be frozen or pressure washed away . . . but both have knock on effects according to a council spokeswoman.

She said: "Gum is very resilient and it requires specialist machinery to remove it from the pavements.

"Pressure washers can also remove the cement from between flag stones on the pavement and this can make walkways dangerous.

"Bolton Council tried freezing gum at the time of the Millennium, but it requires the use of a very noisy machine that is unsuitable to use during the busy day time - and both machines can cost as much as £15,000 to buy."

Cathy Savage, Bolton Town Centre Manager, said: "This is a major problem and needs sorting out.

"Chewing gum is all over Bolton's pavements and it is spoiling the image of the town.

"There is currently a fixed penalty fine for people dropping gum, which is working to some degree, but there is already a lot of chewing gum stuck to the floor."

The clean-up bill for local authorities across Britain is estimated to total £150m a year.