Maine seeks grant applicants for landfill diversion projects

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is seeking grant applications to assist in the creation, implementation or enhancement of projects that aim to divert more solid waste from landfills.

The DEP granted a total of about $100,028 to fund five waste diversion projects across Maine during a round of funding in the fall of 2022.

These grants are helping one municipality develop a food scrap collection and composting program for one municipality, enabling another to improve the quality of its compost products, assisting a third community in providing food scrap collection to its multicultural community through the creation of translated signs and other advertisements and, lastly, improving accessibility to a community-based resource recovery and reuse facility in central Maine.

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All interested municipalities, regional associations and Maine businesses are encouraged to apply. The DEP will provide awards ranging from $1,000 to $40,000 (totaling $125,000) as a result of this RFP process and prefers proposals that:

• take advantage of regional economies of scale;
• Specify reuse and repair of infrastructure and program development;
• increase organics management and recycling infrastructure in underserved areas of the state;
• promote waste reduction through reuse, repair and sharing economy initiatives;
• address a statewide need; and
• expand the types of materials managed through composting and recycling.

In addition, in accordance with state law, the DEP gives the highest priority in the awarding of funds to programs, projects, initiatives or activities proposed by municipal or regional association applicants.

Application details on the RFP No. 202301008—Waste Diversion Grants Program—are available online. A presentation with additional information also is available.

Written questions on the RFP must be submitted by Feb. 19, and proposals must be submitted electronically by 4 p.m. March 7.