Trenton, Hamilton receives grants to clean communities
The capital city region has received grants to help clean up the trash-laden streets.
Trenton and Hamilton are among several New Jersey municipalities that received grants from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to assist in cleaning up and beautifying communities.
“Litter is not only unsightly, it poses a significant threat to our environment because much of it — including plastics that do not degrade readily — is carried by stormwater runoff into our ecologically sensitive waterways and wetlands,” state DEP Acting Commissioner Catherine McCabe said in a written statement. “Appropriately, some of the areas receiving the largest grants are our cities, where it is particularly important that we focus litter removal efforts.”
The DEP is awarding more than $17.2 million to eligible municipalities and nearly $2.2 million to the state’s 21 counties.
The nonprofit New Jersey Clean Communities oversees reporting requirements for the program. Grants are funded by a legislated user-fee on manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors that produce litter-generating products. Disbursements to municipalities are based on the number of housing units and miles of municipally owned roadways within each municipality.
Municipalities receiving the largest grants are:
•Newark (Essex County), $401,583
•Jersey City (Hudson County ), $371,385
•Toms River County), $209,273
•Paterson (Passaic County), $179,928
•Hamilton Township (Mercer County), $177,004
•Edison Township (Middlesex County), $166,404
•Elizabeth (Union County), $164,999 (Ocean
•Woodbridge Township (Middlesex County), $163,272
•Brick Township (Ocean County), $158,713
•Middletown (Monmouth County), $143,055
•Cherry Hill (Camden County), $140,976
•Trenton (Mercer County), $132,574
•Clifton (Passaic County), $128,937
•Vineland (Cumberland County), $123,965
•Franklin Township (Somerset County), $122,514
Activities funded by Clean Communities grants include cleanups of stormwater systems that can disperse trash into streams, rivers and bays; volunteer cleanups of public properties; 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.
For a complete list of municipal and county grant awards, visit: www.njclean. org.