Westfield's Zero Single Use Plastics Plan Earns $2K Grant

WESTFIELD, NJ - The Westfield Green Team was awarded a $2,000 Sustainable Jersey capacity-building grant funded by the PSEG Foundation for its recently-launched Zero Single Use Plastics initiative.

The initiative encourages residents and businesses to choose reusable bags and straws in an effort to help advance sustainability.

“Our goal is by focusing on both ends of the equation, shoppers and businesses we can significantly lessen the impact of single use plastics,” said Councilman David Contract, Green Team Liaison.

At the May 4 Earth Day event, The Green Team distributed 600 reusable bags and straws directly to residents to kick off this effort. The grant money now allows for the purchase of several hundred more reusable bags and straws to provide to Westfield businesses to distribute to their customers.

“We are thrilled to receive this grant to help advance our ongoing sustainability efforts here in Westfield,” said Mayor Shelley Brindle. “Thanks to the innovative thinking of our Green Team and their partnership with the Downtown Westfield Corporation, this single use plastics reduction initiative in our Downtown businesses will be an important new step in reducing waste and promoting awareness among residents.”

Thirty-six grants totaling $200,000 were distributed to municipalities in fifteen New Jersey counties. The grant awards will fund a range of projects including green infrastructure, park restoration, single-use plastic reduction campaigns, rain gardens, environmental resource inventories, creative placemaking, green team capacity building and more.

“From climate change, to water, waste and equity issues, so many of the big sustainability concerns are reaching a crisis point. This investment in sustainability projects will have lasting benefits to New Jersey,” said Randall Solomon, executive director for Sustainable Jersey. He extended his congratulations to all of the towns that received grants. “We're seeing exciting results from previous grant projects, and we are looking forward to similarly productive, innovative progress from the current group of awardees."

The PSEG Foundation has contributed 1.9 million dollars in funding to the Sustainable Jersey grants program for municipalities and schools.

“Supporting local municipalities in their efforts to build sustainability programs puts resources where they’re needed and aren’t always available, and PSEG is proud to do so” said Barb Short, president of the PSEG Foundation. “Sustainable Jersey helps bring real change and has a lasting impact to neighborhoods throughout New Jersey.”

Proposals were evaluated by an independent Blue-Ribbon Selection Committee. The Sustainable Jersey grants are intended to help municipalities make progress toward a sustainable future in general, and specifically toward Sustainable Jersey certification. Nearly 90 percent of the New Jersey population lives in a registered or certified Sustainable Jersey community. Currently 450 municipalities, or 80 percent of New Jersey municipalities, are registered with Sustainable Jersey.

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