Monroe Township Awarded $134K Clean Communities Grant from DEP
Township to Receive a $16K Increase for 2024
MONROE TOWNSHIP, N.J. – May 29, 2024 – Monroe Township today announced that it is the recipient of a $134,073 Clean Communities grant from the state Department of Environmental Protection’s (NJDEP) Solid Waste Division.
Clean Communities grants are intended to help municipalities and counties across New Jersey promote volunteer and paid clean-up events, purchase equipment, support enforcement activities and educational opportunities.
“In Monroe Township, we take great pride in our various initiatives to keep our community clean and our DPW staff works extremely hard to keep our town litter-free throughout the year,” said Mayor Stephen Dalina. “It is through programs like Clean Communities that we are able to keep our streets, open space, recreation areas and township grounds clear of litter and debris.”
Mayor Dalina thanked Monroe Township residents for their ongoing support and enthusiastic participation in the Clean Sweep Monroe litter clean-up days and educational initiatives throughout the year.
This year’s grant reflects an increase of about $16,073 from the grant received in 2023. Monroe Township is the fourth-largest recipient in all of Middlesex County and ranked in the top thirty awards in the state. This grant award allows the Township to continue to improve upon its ongoing community engagement and education initiatives.
In total, the NJDEP is awarding $24.3 million to eligible municipalities and $3 million to counties across the state to conduct cleanups, educate the public and enforce litter-related laws and ordinances. Allocations are based on statistical reports that outline the number of housing units and municipally-owned roadway mileage in a respective area.
Grants are funded by a legislated user-fee on manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors that produce litter-generating products.
“Local litter abatement programs are more important than ever as we strive to prevent roadway litter from getting into our waterways,” said JoAnn Gemenden, Executive Director of the New Jersey Clean Communities Council. “Clean Communities grants provide local governments with critical funds to help create a Litter Free NJ.”
The NJCCC operates public awareness campaigns to educate the public, primarily youth, about the adverse environmental impacts of litter, especially on waterways.
“Litter comes from many sources and these grants help us to organize community programs that educate the public about proper trash disposal, reducing waste and the environmental impacts of litter,” municipal clean communities coordinator Joe Slomian said.
The Clean Communities grant program funds a variety of activities including volunteer cleanups of public spaces; cleanups of stormwater systems that can disperse trash into waterways; educational outreach campaigns; enforcement of local anti-littering ordinances; and purchases of trash receptacles, recycling bins and anti-litter signs.
For a complete list of 2024 municipal and county grant awards, visit www.njclean.org/coordinators/grant-funding
All media inquiries may be directed to the Monroe Township’s Public Information Officer Stacey Kennedy at 732-521-4400 or