NJ American Water launches bottled water grant program

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New Jersey American Water is accepting applications from communities that want to build reusable water bottle filling stations that would fill multi-use bottles with the company’s filtered tap water.

The public water utility has set aside $25,000 to build 12 stations in its service areas across the state, prioritizing communities of color, economically disadvantaged neighborhoods and cities with a history of water pollution.

These high-tech stations often use touchless sensors, reducing the spread of germs.

The initiative is aimed in part at reducing single-use plastic waste, said Mark McDonough, president of New Jersey American Water.

“Single-use plastics pose a huge challenge to the environment and we have all seen images of clogged rivers and oceans,” he said. “Often when we clean sewage systems as part of our operations, we see a huge amount of plastic lying around.”

Last year, 100 billion plastic beverage containers were sold in the United States, many of which ended up in landfills and waterways, polluting the environment and endangering wildlife.

Studies also found that plastic bottles release microplastics that can affect a person’s health when ingested.