Bridgewater, NJ Receiving State Grant for Recycling Efforts

SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): Bridgewater Township is one of many receiving a grant from the state for 2020 recycling efforts, according to a release. The state is awarding about $16.2 million in grants to municipalities around the state to enhance waste reduction and recycling programs based on 2020 recycling performance. Bridgewater is receiving $172,767.

“New Jersey has long set a national example for recycling, starting with being the first state to enact a recycling law in 1987,” Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette said in the release. “This annual grant program provides incentives for communities to strengthen their municipal recycling initiatives, encourage children and adults to keep our environment clean and provide assistance in helping to reduce the local tax burden while also improving quality of life.”

Grants are awarded, the release said, through the state’s Recycling Enhancement Act, and are funded through a $3 per ton surcharge on trash disposed at solid waste facilities. The DEP then returns 60% of that money to municipalities based on how much recycling each community reports during a calendar year. In 2020, the release said, the state generated 20,997,099 total tons of solid waste.

Courtesy: www.wasteadvantagemag.com