We did it! Thanks to Madison's plastic bag ban (plus 129 others), New Jersey's Plastic Pollution Reduction Act (S864) became the strictest single-use plastics law in the U.S. It goes into effect in May 2022 and prohibits all single-use bags (both plastic and paper), as well as disposable polystyrene foam cups and food containers. Its "Skip the Straw" provision starts earlier: In November 2021, plastic straws will only be available at food service businesses on request.

To pass our plastic bag ordinance, we worked closely with Chatham Borough and Chatham Township and found that, collectively, we could really make a difference.

Stay tuned for more multi-town actions, including a spring garage sale.

A special thank you: NJ's ground-breaking legislation wouldn't have happened without our Mayor, our council and our representatives in Trenton: Assemblyman John McKeon, a primary sponsor of the bill, Assemblywoman Mila Jasey, a co-sponsor, Sen. Richard Codey and Governor Phil Murphy. We applaud their leadership in fighting the plastic pollution crisis.

Healthy, chemical-free soil absorbs water, helps prevent flooding and ensures that rainwater filters down to our aquifer that stores Madison's water supply, rather than running off into sewer drains.

In addition, healthy soil differs from chemical-fed soil in that it's rich in micronutrients and insect life. This enables it to combat climate change by sequestering carbon dioxide, the primary greenhouse gas emitted through human activities.

Unfortunately, much of the soil in New Jersey has been degraded by development, habitat destruction, toxic chemicals and other pollution.

You can reverse this trend in your yard by feeding the soil, not the grass or the plants. Stay tuned for our workshop on the "ABCs of Organic Lawn Care," led by Brian Monaghan, Master Gardener and MEC member.

Did you know that eliminating food waste is the #1 solution for combating climate change, according to Project Drawdown?

In landfills, food waste emits methane, which is 25 times more harmful than CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions.

In 2020, we launched these composting initiatives, to help residents turn food waste into soil-enriching compost:

♻️ We sold composters for the third year. Stay tuned for our 2021 fall sale.

♻️ Java's Compost brought curbside pickup to Madison

♻️ Pumpkin recycling enabled residents to bring past-their-prime pumpkins and jack-o'-lanterns to Madison's Recycling Center on Station Ave.

♻️ We held a Zoom forum with composting tips (you can watch the recording). It's full of photos and ideas from about Madison compost set-ups that range from super basic to state-of-the-art.

How are your native plants growing? Our volunteers delivered 165 native pollinator plants to residents this spring, and we partnered with the Community Garden to give away another 200 plants in the fall.

Why does this matter? Every native species you plant supports insects and birds, which are under serious stress from climate change.

🦋 Butterflies needs specific host plants to lay their eggs.

🐛 A single chickadee eats 350 to 570 caterpillars a day!

🌼 Native flowers, trees, shrubs and grasses are best equipped to thrive in our yards — without the need for excessive watering or harmful (and expensive) chemical fertilizers and pesticides that kill beneficial insects.

🐝 Beneficial insects supported by native plants help pollinate flowers, feed birds, and prey on pests such as mosquitos and Japanese beetles.

Learn why pesticide use is a hazard to children and dogs, too.

When the pandemic cancelled our annual Town Swap, three enterprising volunteers stepped up to start a Madison Swap & Share Facebook page. From the initial trio — Kirsten Wallenstein, Violet Wallerstein, and Kristin Murray — membership has quickly grown to an amazing 1,400 Madison residents!

We love the way the Swap creates community. We've seen people borrow chairs and bike racks, give outgrown snow pants and boots to other families, and trade zucchinis for zucchini bread.

We're also proud that our new Madison NJ Plant Sharing and Gardening group creates a local way to share plants, seeds and gardening knowledge. We hope you'll join us!

Why this matters: Consumer goods have high carbon footprints. Swapping reduces wasteful packaging (including plastic plant pots). It eliminates emissions from delivery trucks, and keeps usable items out of the landfill

Madison is leading the way with multi-town partnerships that strengthen our ability to put effective sustainability measures in place.

In October, we worked with our friends in Chatham Borough and Chatham Township to create five multi-town working groups:

🌳 Green Building and Energy Efficiency

🌳 EVs and Green Municipal Fleets

🌳 Energy Aggregation

🌳 Pollinators & Pesticides

🌳 Climate Action

If you'd like to be part of any of these groups, write to us at MEC@rosenet.org.

We welcome volunteers with expertise in everything from gardening to collecting data.

Your ideas will help us do even more in 2021.