Tewksbury Wins $1.5K Recycling Dividend State Grant

TEWKSBURY, MA — Tewksbury was awarded a $1,500 grant to mark America Recycles Day, the Gov. Charlie Baker administration said Monday.

Tewksbury was one of 268 Massachusetts communities and regional solid waste districts to be awarded recycling-related grants. The awards totaled $3.1 million.

"The grants are made available through the Sustainable Materials Recovery Program, which was created by the Green Communities Act of 2008 and has provided more than $46 million to recycling programs since 2010," according to a news release. "At the announcement, Gov. Charlie Baker said the new round of grant funding will aid municipal efforts 'to implement innovative programs and policies' to maximize the reuse of materials, boost recycling, and reduce waste. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito said the program helps municipalities and solid waste districts expand recycling and composting, while targeting new materials to remove from the waste stream."

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Tewksbury was one of 42 municipalities were awarded "Small-Scale Initiatives Grants" totaling $46,250.

"These population-based grants range from $500 to $2,000 each and help communities purchase modest but important recycling materials and outreach tools needed to sustain their existing recycling program or to facilitate new, low-cost initiatives," the state said. "Each of these SMRP programs are administered by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection."

The rest of the grants were through the Recycling Dividends Program, which "recognizes municipalities that have implemented policies and programs proven to maximize the reuse and recycling of materials, as well as waste reduction." Recycling Dividends Program payments must be reinvested in recycling programs.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.