Nearly $958,000 in Climate Change and Sustainable Community Grants Awarded To 162 Municipalities and Regional Groups

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) announced today that it has awarded $957,885 in grants to 162 communities and regional organizations to address issues of climate change, sustainability, and pollution prevention.

The conditional funding will support innovative local and regional efforts to save energy, reduce waste, recycle and compost more, eliminate hazardous materials from school facilities and grounds, and reduce people's exposure to air pollution from excessive idling of bus, car, and truck engines. 

"Climate change is the critical environmental challenge of our time," said MassDEP Commissioner Laurie Burt. "The Patrick Administration believes that it is our responsibility to seek solutions to mitigate climate change, and these grants will help local communities reduce their carbon footprint, while sustaining the quality of life we enjoy in this Commonwealth and our nation."

Commissioner Burt announced that MassDEP has awarded:

* Climate Change grants totaling $104,000 to six communities that are working to reduce greenhouse gases by using approaches such as researching and installing green roofs, using solar power, public outreach, and retrofitting traffic signals with light-emitting diodes (LEDs). These grants were awarded to Boston ($50,000), Cohasset ($17,050), Hull ($8,400), Marlborough ($12,000), Melrose (1,550), and Reading ($15,000).

* School chemical management grants, valued at $12,200 each, to Falmouth, Framingham, Sturbridge, and Weston. Recipients will use the funds to target the removal of unwanted hazardous chemicals from storage and establish purchasing controls and management systems.

* Vehicle idling reduction tool kits that 21 recipients - including Barnstable, Newton, Salem and Weymouth - will use to educate drivers about the importance of turning their engines off when they are parked or making deliveries. State law limits most engine idling to five minutes or less.

* Mercury Collection Sheds to eight municipalities and regional groups - including Athol, Concord, Greenfield and Norton - for the collection and recycling of mercury-containing products. The 8x10 storage sheds are for collecting universal wastes, such as fluorescent lamps, certain batteries, mercury thermostats and other mercury-containing devices in efforts to support the Massachusetts Mercury Management Act, which focuses on preventing the release of mercury into our environment.  

* Water Conservation equipment grants awarded to 59 municipalities. Equipment includes certificates for Rain Barrels and Water Conservation Toolkits that will help residents make their homes "water tight and waste free" by providing them with low-flow shower heads, rain gauges, dye-tablets, kitchen faucet aerators, outdoor hose nozzles and educational materials.

* Recycling equipment grants awarded include assistance to 19 composting programs, and 40 public area recycling programs. Also, 28 municipalities will receive educational outreach assistance with a customized recycling piece, and 53 municipalities will receive Waste Reduction Toolkits filled with a variety of materials and resources to assist municipal recycling coordinators in promoting public participation in local waste reduction programs. 

* In addition, 20 municipalities that are hoping to implement "Pay-as-You-Throw" solid waste management programs this year have been awarded funding which would be used by the communities to help finance the program start-up costs. Also known as unit-based pricing, "Pay-as-You-Throw" is a system in which residents pay for municipal solid waste management services based on how much trash they discard. More than 120 communities in Massachusetts already have "Pay-As-You-Throw" programs with recycling rates an average of 40 percent higher than those without it.

Since 1990, MassDEP has awarded over $42 million in waste reduction, recycling, and pollution prevention grants to cities, towns, regional entities, and state colleges and universities.

Note: A complete list of grant recipients is attached or can be found at: www.mass.gov/dep/recycle/recawgr.htm

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