Anti-illegal dumping billboard placed in San Juan County. Courtesy/NMED
NMED News:
SANTA FE — The New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) is now accepting applications for fiscal year 2024 Recycling and Illegal Dumping (RAID) Fund grants for scrap tire management, illegal dumpsite abatement, recycling, and composting projects.
Municipalities, counties, pueblos, nations, tribes, solid waste authorities, cooperative associations (as defined in the RAID Act), and land grant communities are eligible for funding.
A total of $800,000 will be available in the upcoming fiscal year. Two-thirds of the RAID fund will be awarded for scrap tire management and abatement projects, and one-third of the fund will be awarded for recycling projects and illegal dumpsite abatement. Matching funds and in-kind contributions are not required but are encouraged.
The RAID grant is a reimbursement grant program which provides funding for the prevention and abatement of illegal dumpsites, scrap tire abatement and management, and the development of recycling programs and infrastructure. Grant funding may also be used to develop educational outreach and marketing campaigns. A list of previously funded projects is available on the NMED website under Solid Waste Bureau, RAID Grants.
“RAID grants provide vital funding to assist communities in addressing illegal dumping and the proper disposal of scrap tires in New Mexico,” Solid Waste Bureau Chief Joan Snider said. “This program funds projects that keep neighborhoods healthy, safe, and pollution free. Eligible entities should submit applications in order to take advantage of this opportunity.”
From fiscal year 2007 to fiscal year 2023, NMED awarded over $11.9 million dollars for 370 projects and helped to abate over 181 illegal dumpsites throughout the state. In FY22, San Juan County received a $16,690 grant to clean up three illegal dumpsites and display anti-illegal dumping messaging on local billboards for high visibility messaging to residents.
RAID grants benefit New Mexicans more broadly by raising awareness of the importance of proper solid waste management. The New Mexico Environment Department provides financing in the forms of grants and loans to the public and private sector to improve air quality, ensure safe and healthy drinking water, and clean-up solid and hazardous wastes. The RAID grant program will further the department’s goal of investing in $65M in communities this fiscal year, one of the economic performance measures as discussed in NMED’s Quarterly Performance Assessment Report.
Applications for FY24 are available at https://www.env.nm.gov/forms and are due by 5 p.m. March 31, 2023. Applicants may submit their completed application by e-mail (preferred), mail, or fax. Grants will be awarded on a competitive basis for the state fiscal year starting on or about July 1, 2023 and ending on or about June 30, 2024. Funded projects must be completed within the fiscal year.
For more information about RAID grants and eligibility requirements, or to discuss project ideas, contact the Solid Waste Bureau, Outreach Section at SWB.inbox@env.nm.gov or 505.827.0197.
