NJDEP UPDATE
$ 20.7 Million in Clean Communities Grants to Prevent Litter Statewide
Compiled by John Joseph Parker Contributing Editor
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection ( NJDEP ) Acting Commissioner Shawn LaTourette awarded $ 20.7 million in grants to help municipalities and counties implement programs to clean up and reduce litter in communities across New Jersey .
Over the years , the NJDEP has provided municipalities and counties hundreds of millions of dollars in Clean Communities grants to implement litter cleanup and abatement programs , including adoption and enforcement of local anti-littering ordinances ; beach cleanups ; public information and education programs ; and purchases of litter collection equipment such as receptacles , recycling bins , anti-litter signs and graffiti removal supplies .
This year , the NJDEP has awarded $ 18.4 million in municipal grants and $ 2.3 million in county grants . The total of $ 20.7 million represents a $ 1.3 million increase from last year due to an increase in revenues . The program is funded by a legislated user-fee on manufacturers , wholesalers and distributors that produce litter-generating products . Disbursements are based on housing units and miles of roadways within a municipality or county .
Municipalities receiving at least $ 100,000 this year are : Newark , $ 430,941 ; Jersey City , $ 397,992 ;
Governor Phil Murphy
Toms River ; $ 223,521 ; Paterson , $ 192,797 ; Hamilton ( Mercer ), $ 189,554 ; Elizabeth , $ 177,438 ; Edison , $ 178,108 ; Woodbridge , $ 175,036 ; Brick , $ 169,773 ; Middletown , $ 153,512 ; Franklin ( Somerset ), $ 131,997 ; Cherry Hill , $ 150,990 ; Monroe ( Middlesex ), $ 94,060 ; Trenton , $ 142,013 ; Clifton , $ 138,044 ; Vineland , $ 133,385 ;
NJDEP Acting Commissioner Shawn LaTourette
Berkeley , $ 130,529 ; Camden , $ 126,314 ; Gloucester Township , $ 124,173 ; Old Bridge , $ 119,697 ; Lakewood , $ 119,795 ; Jackson , $ 114,806 ; Howell , $ 117,155 ; East Orange , $ 110,384 ; Parsippany-Troy Hills , $ 111,066 ; Manchester , $ 110,261 ; Egg Harbor Township , $ 104,183 ; Bayonne , $ 107,049 , and Wayne , $ 107,384 .
County grants were awarded as follows : Atlantic , $ 126,674 ; Bergen , $ 150,409 ; Burlington , $ 171,897 ; Camden , $ 134,898 ; Cape May , $ 71,946 ; Cumberland , $ 183,538 ; Essex , $ 72,938 ; Gloucester , $ 140,808 ; Hudson , $ 18,910 ; Hunterdon , $ 82,518 ; Mercer , $ 60,734 ; Middlesex , $ 107,081 ; Monmouth , $ 128,957 ; Morris , $ 97,181 ; Ocean , $ 209,457 ; Passaic , $ 83,782 ; Salem , $ 122,231 ; Somerset , $ 84,476 ; Sussex , $ 106,658 ; Union , $ 59,594 ; Warren , $ 88,998 .
It can take 1,000 years for a plastic bag to break down in the environment .
Photo : Getty Images / iStockphoto
New Environmental Protections Against Single-Use Plastics
It can take a thousand years for a plastic bag to break down in the environment The U . S . Environmental Protection Agency estimates that Americans use some 380 billion plastic bags and wraps each year . Only about five percent is recycled .
Last fall , Governor Phil Murphy signed a law , effective May 4 , 2022 , reducing litter by banning the sale or providing of plastic bags , regardless of thickness , at grocery stores and retail outlets , as well as paper bags at grocery stores measuring
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