TRENTON – The Senate today unanimously approved legislation sponsored by Senators Paul A. Sarlo and Bob Smith that would allow for businesses and nonprofit organizations to adopt a piece of the Barnegat Bay and be responsible for clean-up and maintenance of stormwater basins in the Bay’s watershed.
“There are more than 2,000 storm water basins in the Barnegat Bay watershed that are failing and in desperate need of repair,” said Senator Sarlo (D-Bergen, Passaic). “These repairs are critically important to ensure improved water quality for New Jersey’s residents within the watershed. This legislation is a great way to create public-private partnerships with organizations and corporations throughout the state and to make it simple for them to contribute to repairs essential to the environmental health of their communities.”
“The ‘Adopt a Barnegat Bay Stormwater Basin Act’ is a great way for corporations, businesses and nonprofit organizations to give back to a community and the Bay that provides them with economic resources and a large consumer base with both the region’s year-round inhabitants as well as the millions of tourists who head to the shore each summer,” said Senator Smith, D-Middlesex, Chairman of the Senate Environment and Energy Committee. “This program is a win-win for participating organizations who will not only receive recognition for their efforts in reinvigorating Barnegat Bay, but also a tax credit for the amount they spend on maintenance, repairs and construction of rainwater basins.”