New Jersey American Water Announces 2014 Environmental Grants Recipients

VOORHEES, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Five organizations that are working to make New Jersey and their communities more environmentally friendly have been chosen as the recipients of New Jersey American Water’s 2014 Environmental Grant Program. The grants, which total approximately $36,000, are awarded to groups with projects that will address water source or water shed protection.

A panel of judges from New Jersey American Water chose the following recipients based on criteria such as project goals, project impact, innovation, design, collaboration, sustainability, and community engagement among other requirements.

Borough of Highlands, Monmouth County for a project to install 100 rain barrels throughout the borough to encourage residents to collect and reuse rain water for watering gardens, agriculture, washing cars, plumbing and to create filtered water.

Camden Urban Airshed Reforestation Program has a plan to install 20 street trees in East Camden which will replace 320 square feet of concrete to increase storm water filtration by 15,000 gallons and improve the Delaware Watershed.

Cranbury Environmental Commission which will construct a rain garden at Village Park parking lot and Brainerd Lake. The rain garden will slow pollutant run-off from the parking lot into the lake.

Girl Scouts Heart of New Jersey (Lebanon, NJ) to install bat boxes near the Round Valley Reservoir. Bats are predators of flying insects, consuming up to 3,000 insects each night. By thinning the insect population, bats help to reduce or stop the use of chemical pesticides which produce harmful run-off into the reservoir.

Raritan & Millstone Rivers Flood Control Commission to install webcams and a weather station at the confluence of the Raritan and Millstone Rivers to monitor rainfall amounts and weather conditions. The project will allow police and emergency management to view the river and track the flow and height of waters after major storms for the potential to prevent and/or react to flooding conditions.

New Jersey American Water’s Environmental Grant Program provides funding to organizations engaged in activities that improve a community's water supply or improve, restore or protect watersheds, or promote water conservation. Such projects may include wildlife habitat improvement, storm water management, wellhead protection initiatives, watershed cleanups, rain garden projects, and water conservation or reforestation efforts. Since it began in 2009, New Jersey American Water’s Environmental Grant Program has now provided nearly $150,000 in grants to notable green projects.

New Jersey American Water, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water and/or wastewater services to approximately 2.5 million people. Founded in 1886, American Water is the largest publicly traded U.S. water and wastewater utility company. With headquarters in Voorhees, N.J., the company employs more than 6,000 dedicated professionals who provide drinking water, wastewater and other related services to approximately 14 million people in more than 40 states, as well as parts of Canada. More information can be found by visiting www.amwater.com.