Jiji Press
Seiichi Miyamoto of Gumclean Co. works on a sidestroll in Minato Ward, Tokyo, on Friday.
11:41 JST, January 30, 2023
TOKYO (Jiji Press) — For Greater than 20 yrs, Seiichi Miyamoto has engaged Inside the eradicating of chewing gum stains from sidestrolls, Eliminating over 4.6 million such stains.
A local of Nagano Metropolis, Miyamoto is an authorities of Tokyo-based mostly Gumclean Co., The one expert chewing gum waste eradicating service supplier in Japan.
The agency receives orders from native authoritiess and buying districts To wash As a lot aswns and cities. “We hope to create an environment the place people can stroll comfortably,” said Miyamoto.
Finally this month, Miyamoto was deftly sprucing The underside at a crossing Inside the Roppongi district of Tokyo’s Minato Ward. After a British-made machine sprayed 130 C steam and cleansing liquid on chewing gum stains, they softened and have been simply take awayd with a brush.
Based on Miyamoto, every chewing gum stain Might be take awayd in 10 seconds, and As a lot as round 1,300 per day.
“Gum waste tends To diminish in places Which have been cleaned up,” Miyamoto said.
Chewing gum manufacturing is down some 40% from 20 yrs in the past, and gum waste on the streets May even be on the decline. Nonetheless, there are black spots All by way of the place that Appear to have been there For A very Very prolonged time.
Miyamoto was in his late 30s when he joined Gumclean On the invitation of an acquaintance who was a shareholder Inside the agency. At the time, he was the agency’s solely full-time worker.
In his first yr, the agency acquired Simply one order as few native authoritiess have been prepared to allocate price range funds for the eradicating of chewing gum waste, which was principally carried out manually by volunteers On the time.
Miyamoto recalled a buyer asking him, “Are you saying That somebody could fall to The underside and get harm if there are gum stains?”
“I felt Simply like the very set off for the agency’s existence was being denied,” he said.
As he proceedd efforts to persuade buyers of The Want to take away chewing gum waste, the Quantity Of people displaying curiosity Inside the service progressively elevated. Now, the agency receives over 100 orders yrly.
In current occasions, asphalt sidestrolls have been more and more changed with higher-wanting tiled or completely different sidestrolls. Miyamoto said he will get irritated if such new roads are left with stains.
“Japan Is candy at constructing issues, however I am questioning if Individuals Aren’t Considering about sustaining them,” he said.
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted people to put on face masks, The quantity of chewing gum litter on the streets decreased drastically.
Miyamoto said he hopes that chewing gum waste will proceed To diminish even after people cease sporting face masks.
“I think about that displaying gum waste eradicating work will enlighten people,” he said.