Fort Lee Awarded More Than $50,000 from State to Help Clean Up Community

The Christie Administration announced Thursday the award of nearly $16 million in grants to municipalities and counties to keep the state clean through community litter cleanup efforts, including $50,340.64 to the Borough of Fort Lee.

"This grant program is a perfect example of state and local partnerships working together to maximize the use of limited resources to address environmental issues," said Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Bob Martin in a press release. "Cleaning up litter protects our natural resources, improves our quality of life and builds a strong sense of pride in our communities. These grants provide our municipalities and counties the tools they need to accomplish these goals."

Fort Lee’s “Clean Communities” grant award was among the largest in Bergen County, with only Teaneck ($53,609) and Hackensack ($59,073) receiving more from the state.

Disbursements to municipalities are based on the number of housing units and miles of roadways owned by each town, the DEP says.

In addition, Bergen County’s $116,019 award was the fourth largest in the state after Ocean County ($162,697), Cumberland County ($142,494) and Burlington County ($133,254).

County amounts are based on miles of county-owned roads.

The DEP identifies the following as examples of what could be funded by the Clean Communities grants:

• Volunteer cleanups of public properties

• Adopting and enforcing anti-littering ordinances

• Developing public information and education programs

• Purchasing litter collection equipment, litter receptacles and recycling bins, anti-littering signs or supplies to remove graffiti

• Cleaning up storm water systems

The grants are funded by a user-fee on manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors that produce litter-generating products, according to the DEP.

Total grant amounts by municipality and county are available here.