Irish third-level institutions are being offered the chance of €1 million funding to create a non-stick chewing gum, writes Marie O'Halloran.
Minister for Environment Dick Roche said the gum industry would fund the research to create a biodegradable gum to tackle one of the State's biggest litter problems.
The industry has tried for 25 years to create such a gum.
Mr Roche said yesterday that the fund would give an Irish university or institute of technology a "very valuable opportunity" to develop links with US universities engaged in this research to change the structures of polymers used in gum so that it loses its stickiness but keep its benefits.
He said it was an ideal chance for young scientists and institutes already in food research.
The fund is expected to be advertised in the autumn.
The research to "ungum the gum" is one of the elements planned by a gum litter task force launched last week by the Minister in a three-year experiment to change public attitudes and persuade people to dispose of gum properly to prevent it sticking to paths and streets.
The task force comprises the Department of Environment, local authorities, the gum industry and the employers' group Ibec. The initial pilot schemes will run in Dublin, Cork and in Bray, the Minister's own constituency.
Mr Roche said many other countries used chewing gum but did not have a problem in disposing of it. "I thought the problem was that there were simply not enough litter bins but they are everywhere."
He believed "people are just irresponsible in the way they dispose of gum. We are trying to change attitudes and get people to take responsibility for their actions."
He still retained the right to impose a 10 per cent tax on chewing gum.
While this would bring in €4 million or €5 million "by the time you'd collect it and distribute it to all the local authorities it would only be worth €60,000 or €80,000 for each, and that wouldn't do a lot of cleaning up".