Business View Magazine - October 2018

198 199 tion, newwindows, or solar installations–over the expected life of the measure.” Nocera: “Our SMART program,which stands for Save Money and Reduce Trash, is a State of Con- necticut initiative to reduce the amount of trash and increase the amount of recycling that cities and mu- nicipalities are able to collect.We received an initial grant of about $54,000; the first half of which has gone towards public education,which is a critical part of this model.The State of Connecticut con- tracted with ZeroWaste, the state consultants that are helping the individual municipalities through the process. Essentially, the City’s current collection is a large green container for trash and a smaller blue container for recycling.The whole initiative is to turn that around,where the larger container will be for recycling to encourage the public about recy- cling.The city’s public education efforts are ongoing and the City Council has appointed a SolidWaste Management Task Force to further study the issue and continue to explore alternative cost-effective measures to reduce solid waste.” BVM: Can you report on anymajor infrastructure projects? Nocera: “We are located at the mouth of the NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT Thames River and Long Island Sound. So, storm- water management and coastal resiliency is a very important issue for our community. In 2008,New London was one of three communities in the State of Connecticut that received a $240,000 grant from the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection to study how stormwater is managed. After a pilot study,we were able to come out with a number of recommendations that helped move our community forward.At the completion of the study, the City formally adopted the stormwater manage- ment ordinance,which then allowed the City to form a brand new stormwater authority,which was just established in July, 2018.While it’s beginning its work in terms of how it will manage stormwater, we’ve taken the initial steps to get the community onboard. The City is also anticipating notification of funding from the Long Island Sound Futures Fund to hire a consultant to develop a Natural Resource andWatershed Management Plan. The City is mindful of taking a proactive part to ensure that the Sound and River remain healthy and protected.” Bombria: “The New London State Pier covers nearly 30 acres and has two piers with direct rail and deep-water access.Approximately 100 miles south of Boston and 130 miles northeast of New