A HARD-HITTING poster campaign will be launched by Bolton Council in a bid to show the true cost of discarded litter.

The bright orange posters will be highly visible on the side of buses and hoardings and will feature a £50 note, discarded among litter and rats, to show how thoughtless behaviour costs money.

The posters are aimed at people dropping fast food wrappers and leftovers, predominantly in the town centre.

The poster campaign, Don't Waste Your Money, will also serve as a relaunch of the scheme to stop dog owners allowing their pets to foul public spaces.

Environmental health officials say the rat population in Bolton has doubled in the last two years and council bosses believe careless littering is part of the problem.

Litter louts will receive a fine of up to £2,500 if they refuse to pay the £50 fixed penalty issued by an enforcement officer.

Bolton Council is set to launch the campaign in May to warn people of the penalty, and to encourage them to be more responsible when they dispose of their waste.

The council will highlight the cost of clean-up bills to the taxpayer.

Bolton Council spends £2.5 million each year on removing litter and dumped waste in Bolton. The bill does not include the cost of domestic and business refuse collections.

Sally Wolstencroft, environmental education and enforcement manager, said: "People are obviously worried about litter in their town as a matter of hygiene and pride, and it is their money which goes into cleaning up Bolton.

"If our enforcement officers catch someone dropping litter and they are aged 14 or over, we will offer them an alternative to going to court, with a £50 fixed penalty. They will be given up to 14 days to pay. It is up to them if they accept it, but if they do not we will take them to Bolton magistrates court, where the maximum fine will be £2,500.

Mrs Wolstencroft said the scheme will only be a success with the help of the public.

"We are urging people to be our eyes and ears and watch out for people dumping rubbish and litter," she said. "It will only work if people go that extra mile themselves."

The council is in the process of setting up a hotline for people to report fly-tippers and rubbish dumpers.

Mrs Wolstencroft countered claims there had been an increase in fly-tipping following the council's introduction of a £10 removal charge for bulky waste.

"We have been monitoring levels and there has been no significant increase in the dumping of bulky waste," she said.

"There is certainly a cost attached to picking up the waste. We could spread the cost of it across council tax.

"But it would be seen as unfair to charge people who do not use the service just to meet the cost of people who do use it."