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Towns net thousands in state grants to help reduce litter
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At a news conference at Great Falls National Park, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Acting Commissioner Shawn LaTourette announced the award of $20.7 million in grants to help municipalities and counties implement programs to clean up and reduce litter in communities across New Jersey. LaTourette also urged the public to use re-usable shopping bags in advance of the stateʼs new law protecting New Jerseyʼs environment against certain single-use plastics. The law takes effect next year. In the Pascack Valley, the grants are: • Emerson $15,085.44 • Hillsdale $20,663.70 • Montvale $18,119.32 • Park Ridge $18,787.33 • River Vale $20,445.52 • Township of Washington $19,126.05 • Westwood $22,468.76 • Woodcliff Lake $14,830.14 The government of Bergen County received a grant of
$150,409. “We are pleased to provide these grants that have long funded important anti-litter programs in communities throughout the state, including cleanups and public education programs,” LaTourette said in a press release. She said, “DEP is grateful for the continued partnership of New Jersey Clean Communities and all of the municipalities that make litter reduction a priority for their residents.” She added, “We can all do our part in being mindful about littering and the toll it takes on our communities and make it a priority to responsibly manage trash in our homes and at our places of business. Now is the best time to start new litter-reducing habits, including switching to eco-friendly reusable bags for shopping and picking up take-out food.” Over the years, the DEP has provided municipalities and counties hundreds of millions of dollars in Clean Communities grants to implement litter cleanup and abate-
ment 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 DEP 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. 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 5% is recycled. In a step protecting the envi-
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ronment from the harm of plastics pollution, last fall Gov. Phil Murphy signed a landmark law, effective May 4, 2022, protecting the environment and 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 more than 2,500 square feet. The law also bans Styrofoam clamshell food containers. Starting Oct. 4, 2021 plastic straws at restaurants will be available only upon request. Certain exemptions apply. The nonprofit Clean Communities Council, a longtime DEP partner that oversees the implementation of municipal and county litter
abatement programs funded by Clean Communities grants, will also play an important role as the state implements the new bag law. The group has launched a Bag Up NJ campaign, which urges consumers to use re-usable bags when they shop. New Jerseyʼs single-use plastics law is considered the most comprehensive in the nation. To help New Jersey businesses prepare, the New Jersey Business Action Center (NJBAC), part of the New Jersey Department of State, and the DEP have developed online resources. The stateʼs business-focused website Business.NJ.gov as well as the DEP website feature the latest information on the law.
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