The state has awarded nearly $1.6 million in Sustainable Materials Recovery Program (SMRP) grants to 217 cities and towns and regional solid waste districts to help maximize their recycling, composting and waste reduction programs.
The grants not only help support localized community efforts to reduce/reuse/recycle, they also show the state’s commitment to protect natural resources and public health by investing in programs statewide.
Out of 217 communities to receive awards in the first round of SMRP, 166 communities qualified for the “Recycling Dividends Program” (RDP) and will receive payments ranging from $1,200 to $66,000, for a total of $1.39 million statewide. The RDP recognizes municipalities that have implemented policies and programs proven to maximize materials reuse and recycling, as well as waste reduction. Communities that earn RDP payments must reinvest the funds in their recycling programs for things such as new recycling bins or carts, public education and outreach campaigns, collection of hard-to-recycle items and the establishment of recycling programs in schools, municipal buildings and other public spaces.
As part of the SMRP, all 205 municipalities that also applied for “Small-Scale Initiative Grants” were awarded funding. These population-based grants range from $500 to $2,000 each and help communities purchase modest, but critical recycling materials and outreach tools needed to sustain their existing recycling program or to facilitate new, low-cost initiatives. Both of these SMRP programs are administered by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP).
The SMRP was created under the Green Communities Act of 2008. SMRP has invested more that $20-million in recycling programs since 2010.
To read the full story, visit http://wwlp.com/2016/09/07/217-massachusetts-municipalities-to-receive-grants-for-recycling-efforts/.