A CLAMPDOWN on littering has been launched by Colchester Council after the authority joined up with nearly 50 fast food branches to drive down the offence.

The move is part of this year’s Love Essex campaign, which is reminding people that litterers will face either a £150 fixed penalty notice or a fine of up to £2,500 if they are convicted in court.

In total, 23 KFCs and 25 McDonald’s drive-through restaurants are supporting the campaign by promoting the message “It’s a takeaway, not a throwaway” as well as distributing stickers on packaging and inside restaurants.

Colchester Council is also funding campaign messages on petrol pumps at Tesco in Greenstead Road and on the rear of buses, to remind people not to throw litter from vehicles.

Littering has become a serious issue in Colchester, with a dedicated volunteer group set up to remove rubbish from parks and the sides of busy roads.

Problems have also been highlighted at the Asda superstore in Turner Road, as well as Colchester’s city centre, with one councillor saying he is prepared to go through bags of fly-tipped rubbish to try to identify the culprits.

Keeping Essex clean and tidy costs the taxpayer £17.5 million a year and with ever-decreasing local authority budgets, the demand and pressure put on providing services such as street cleansing continues to rise.

Councillor Martin Goss, portfolio holder neighbourhood services and waste, said littering is both illegal and shows a lack of respect for the community.

He said: “One of our key priorities is to keep Colchester clean and an attractive place to live and visit.

“The vast majority of people work with us and dispose of their litter responsibly. However, if people insist on throwing their litter from vehicles or in the streets then we will act.”

The director of people at fast food chain KFC, Claire Owen, added staff at the company would be litter picking as part of their efforts to keep Essex tidy.

“We love Essex and that’s why we’re reminding our customers that it’s a takeaway, not a throwaway. That’s why you’ll see our teams out litter-picking too – doing our bit to keep our streets clean.”