Category: Sustainability

Single-use plastic bags banned as part of budget deal

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a hand holding plastic bag walking in the street As part of the new budget, state leaders passed a ban on single-use plastic shopping bags at most retail and grocery stores (restaurants are exempted). A provision was created for localities to impose a 5¢ fee on paper shopping bags, with revenue to be split 60-40% with the state environmental fund and the locality. (Council Members Brad Lander and Margaret Chin are sponsoring the paper bag fee for New York… Read more

Brewer distributing free reusable bags for Earth Day

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Gale holding a mbpo reuseable tote bag NEW YORK – Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer announced that for Earth Day, which falls on Sunday, April 22, her office will be distributing reusable grocery bags for free at greenmarkets and grocery stores around Manhattan. In addition, Brewer’s office will distribute reusable bags on Saturday, April 21 at the Car-Free New York Day event in Washington Heights on St. Nicholas Avenue near West 183rd Street. New Yorkers throw… Read more

Brewer and Citizens Committee for NYC announce $22,740 in grants for community composting and highlight program’s success with visit to Lydia’s Magic Garden in East Harlem

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member of CItizen's Committee displays a bike Site tour shows off new program building bicycle-carried buckets for coffee composting and planned three-bin garden composting system NEW YORK – Today, Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer joined the Citizens’ Committee for New York City and the Manhattan Solid Waste Advisory Board (SWAB) to announce 36 Community-Scale Composting Grant awards for community garden programs across the city in 2017. In a site tour following the announcement, members of Lydia’s… Read more

Brewer Announces $26 Million in Borough Capital Awards, Doubles Commitment to Urban Agriculture With $2 Million for School Hydroponics, Green Roofs, and Gardens

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NEW YORK – Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer today announced a slate of capital funding awards supporting the borough’s schools, parks, libraries, and community-based nonprofit organizations. The awards included $2 million supporting urban agriculture in public schools, funding facilities like in-school hydroponics labs and rooftop gardens. The awards were included in the city’s budget for the Fiscal Year 2017, which began on July 1. “Whether we’re adding hydroponics labs… Read more

Brewer, Manhattan Borough Board Call on City to Erect Zero Net-Energy Building in Manhattan, Endorse ‘Passive House’ Green Building Standards for Incorporation in Building Code

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Video of the Borough Board meeting is available here, and the Borough Board resolution can be viewed here. At a meeting led by Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer, the Manhattan Borough Board adopted a resolution endorsing ‘passive house’ building standards for ultra-energy efficient buildings and called for the city to undertake construction of a public project in Manhattan that complies with passive house standards. “Manhattan is the… Read more

Manhattanites Invited to Serve on Solid Waste Advisory Board

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Information session January 11, Applications accepted through January 29 The Manhattan Borough President’s office is accepting applications for membership on the Manhattan Solid Waste Advisory Board (SWAB) through Friday, Jan. 29, and will be welcoming all who live, work, or study in Manhattan and are interested in serving to attend an information session Monday, Jan. 11. “The Manhattan Solid Waste Advisory Board is a small body with a huge mission:… Read more

Statement by DSNY regarding Organics Collection

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To: Borough Presidents, Council Members, Community Boards: A newspaper article reported that over the last few days the organic material collected in the Department of Sanitation curbside organics collection program is being sent to landfill as a result of the closure of the Peninsula compost facility in Delaware. The article is not correct. To be clear, residential Brown Bin material is being composted and will continue to be composted. The… Read more

Promoting Neighborhood Composting With a Visit to Chenchita’s Community Garden in E. Harlem

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B.P. Brewer joined Citizens Committee for NYC and Manhattan Solid Waste Advisory Board to highlight resident-led composting projects helping the city achieve their “Zero Waste” goal Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer joined representatives of the Citizens Committee for New York City and the Manhattan Solid Waste Advisory Board toured Chenchita’s Community Garden in East Harlem and held a press conference highlighting the Community Composting Grant Program’s success in promoting… Read more