Southwest Ohio: Ohio EPA Grants $615,000 for Recycling and Litter Prevention
Recipients from Adams, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Darke, Greene, Hamilton, Miami, Montgomery, Preble, and Warren counties
Ohio EPA is awarding more than $615,000 this year in grants to 20 local governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations throughout central Ohio to implement recycling, litter prevention, market development, and scrap tire recycling programs. Statewide, the Agency is issuing more than $5 million in grant funding to 89 recipients, with $3.2 million specifically for community and litter prevention programs.
Local governments and other entities use these grants for litter collection, education programming, and the disposal of scrap tires through amnesty collection events. All local cleanup efforts involve the work of volunteers and take place on public property. Some of these grants tie into a statewide litter campaign, A Little Litter is a Big Problem, announced by Governor Mike DeWine last year to prioritize and promote the conversation around litter in Ohio.
Projects approved for funding (rounded down to the nearest dollar) include:
| Adams-Clermont Solid Waste District | $13,200 | Purchase recycling containers and litter clean-up supplies |
| Butler County Solid Waste District | $45,416 | Recycling outreach and education campaign materials |
| Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden (Hamilton County) | $99,737 | Purchase grinder, lift scale, and bobcat bucket grapple |
| Clinton County Solid Waste Materials District | $23,792 | Community tire events and an electronic collection event |
| Colerain Township (Hamilton County) | $1,200 | Purchase deer cameras to track litterers |
| Darke County Solid Waste | $24,400 | Litter cleanup, tire amnesty program, and KAB renewal fees |
| Fairfield Township (Butler County) | $9,800 | Litter cleanup supplies, rental equipment, advertising, and reusable bags |
| Foundation for Ohio River Education (Multiple counties along Ohio River) | $25,000 | River sweep event |
| Germantown (Montgomery County) | $6,485 | 10 double-outdoor recycling trash cans |
| Greene County | $8,000 | Tire amnesty event |
| Hamilton (Butler County) | $1,422 | Litter clean-up supplies |
| Hamilton County Public Health | $2,156 | Surveillance cameras |
| Keep Cincinnati Beautiful | $16,144 | Litter clean-up supplies |
| Merwin Elementary (Hamilton County) | $4,234 | Purchase equipment for school waste reduction initiative |
| Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati (Hamilton County) | $46,407 | Purchase surveillance cameras, litter clean-up supplies, and education and outreach supplies |
| Preble Arts (Preble County) | $50,000 | Purchase equipment and materials needed to create metal sculptures made from recycled metal that will also serve as recycling bins |
| Warren County Solid Waste District sponsoring AAA Wastewater Services, Inc. and DBA Triple A Pro Services | $194,987 | Purchase Screenco systems for screening at the receiving station and a Greasezilla processing tank |
| Waste-Free Dayton, Inc. (Montgomery County) | $3,820 | Purchase litter cleanup supplies, advertising, recycling carts, and shirt |
| West Milton (Miami County) | $38,806 | Purchase recycling roll-off containers |
| Keep Ohio Beautiful (Statewide) | $80,000 | Litter collection and special venues |
Community and Litter Grants are available to local governments, parks or health departments, state colleges and universities, solid waste authorities, and nonprofit organizations or Keep America Beautiful communities to support and expand community recycling and litter prevention efforts. Market Development Grants assist businesses that purchase equipment and infrastructure for successful markets of recyclable materials and related products. Scrap Tire Grants provide financial assistance to Ohio’s businesses, communities, and nonprofits seeking to convert manufacturing operations into facilities that accept scrap tire material, expand tire processing, or use scrap tire material in construction projects or manufactured products. Academic Institution Grants are available to public and private K-12 schools, colleges, and universities for recycling efforts as well as outreach and education, recycling equipment, and conference sponsorships.
For additional information about the grant programs, contact Marie Barnett at Ohio EPA at Marie.Barnett@epa.ohio.gov, or online: www.recycleohio.gov.
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The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1972 to consolidate efforts to protect and improve air quality, water quality and waste management in Ohio. Since then, air pollutants dropped by as much as 90 percent; large rivers meeting standards improved from 21 percent to 89 percent; and hundreds of polluting, open dumps were replaced with engineered landfills and an increased emphasis on waste reduction and recycling.
