Title
Dept/ Agency: Administration/Office of the Business Administrator
Action: (X) Ratifying (X) Authorizing ( ) Amending
Type of Service: Application and Agreements with NJDEP for the 2022 Natural Climate Solutions Grants
Purpose: Application/Acceptance with NJDEP for the 2022 Natural Climate Solutions Grants
Entity Name: New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP)
Entity Address: 401 East State Street, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0402
Total Grant Amount: $1,228,148.00
Funding Source: New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP)
Grant Period: Thirty-Six (36) months from the date of the execution of the NJDEP contract
Contract Basis: ( ) Bid ( ) State Vendor ( ) Prof. Ser. ( ) EUS
( ) Fair & Open ( ) No Reportable Contributions ( ) RFP ( ) RFQ
( ) Private Sale (X) Grant ( ) Sub-recipient ( ) n/a
Additional Information:
body
WHEREAS, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has made grant funds available for the Natural Climate Solutions Grants for the on-the-ground implementation of projects that create, restore, and enhance New Jersey’s natural carbon sinks, such as salt marshes, seagrass beds, forests, urban parks and woodlands, and street trees in order to meet New Jersey’s climate, clean energy, and equity goals; and
WHEREAS, according to Climate Central the City of Newark (“City”) was recently identified as the City experiencing the second worst heat island effect in the country, and the matter of reducing the City of Newark ‘s heat island index is urgent; and
WHEREAS, on September 15, 2022, the City in partnership with The Nature Conservancy, 200 Pottersville Road, Chester, New Jersey 07930, applied for the Natural Climate Solutions Grant (NCS) as an additional resource for the City to further address its heat island index needs for the "Newark Canopy Initiative”; and
WHEREAS, on September 28, 2023, the City was informed of its allocation of the RGGI Natural Climate Solutions Grant for "Newark Canopy Initiative", NCS-2022-Newark-00020 in the grant amount of One Million Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Thousand One Hundred Forty-Eight Dollars and Zero Cents ($1,228,148.00); and
WHEREAS, the grant funds will be used to implement the "Newark Canopy Initiative" Project and further the City's commitment to environmental sustainability, specifically in addressing the urban heat island effect and strengthening our Newark Canopy Initiative; and
WHEREAS, the grant will enable the City to make a significant contribution towards climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts; and
WHEREAS, the City’s Office of Sustainability will work with local contractors and community members on the Newark Tree Canopy initiative, a three (3) year effort to plant (331) trees in five (5) target neighborhoods in the City. The focus areas - one in each ward - were selected based on community-centered analyses that identified areas of the City that have higher needs in terms of repairing and expanding their tree canopy; and
WHEREAS, the City will work closely with two (2) sub-recipients at the New Jersey Institute of Technology - The Urban Ecology Lab and The Center for Natural Resources; and
WHEREAS, the City and the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) have a formal Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) under 7R1-a adopted on February 6, 2019, to identify, engage and provide opportunities for NJIT students and faculty to collaborate and leverage available resources to explore research and develop projects that seek to improve infrastructure, enhance business and development opportunities, and support technology and innovation in the City; and
WHEREAS, the MOA allows the City and NJIT to work collaboratively to seek funding in the form of grants, technical assistance, and equipment to strengthen and build capacity within the City to enhance and deliver services to our local community; and
WHEREAS, the City desires to enter into a Task Order with NJIT to evaluate planting sites and monitor tree growth and other collaborators to run the software i-Tree, which will identify and help the project team to select the optimal locations within the overall project target areas for trees to be planted for the amount of One Hundred Eighty-Eight Thousand Seven Hundred Forty-Eight Dollars and Zero Cents ($188,748.00); and
WHEREAS, the Business Administrator wishes to accept the RGGI Natural Climate Solutions (NCS) Grant funding and enter into and execute a grant agreement in the amount of One Million Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Thousand One Hundred Forty-Eight Dollars and Zero Cents ($1,228,148.00); and
WHEREAS, no matching municipal funds are required for acceptance of the additional RGGI Natural Climate Solutions Grant funding; and
WHEREAS, no commitment of City resources or staff is required for acceptance of the RGGI Natural Climate Solutions Grant funding; and
WHEREAS, the Governing Body of the City of Newark desires to further the public interest by obtaining a grant from the State of New Jersey in the amount of approximately One Million Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Thousand One Hundred Forty-Eight Dollars and Zero Cents ($1,228,148.00) to fund the following Project: Newark Canopy Initiative.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MUNICIPAL COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, THAT:
1. The Mayor of the City of Newark and/or his designee, the Business Administrator and /or the Interim Chief Sustainability Officer are hereby authorized to submit an application to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (“NJDEP”) requesting Natural Climate Solutions Grant (NCS) funds from the NJDEP for the Newark Canopy Initiative Project at NCS-2022-Newark-00020 in the amount of One Million Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Thousand One Hundred Forty-Eight Dollars and Zero Cents ($1,228,148.00).
2. The Governing Body resolves that Jonathan Gordon, Interim Chief Sustainability Officer or the successor of the Office of Sustainability, is authorized: (a) to make the application for such grant; (b) if awarded, to execute a grant agreement with the State for a grant in the amount of One Million Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Thousand One Hundred Forty-Eight Dollars and Zero Cents ($1,228,148.00); and (c) to execute any amendments thereto.
3. The Mayor of the City of Newark and the Municipal Council authorizes and hereby agrees to match 0% of the Total Project Amount, in compliance with the match requirements of the agreement. The availability of the match for such purposes, whether cash, services, or property, is hereby certified 0% of the match will be made up of in-kind services (if allowed by grant program requirements and the agreement).
4. The Municipal Council hereby ratifies its authorization of this application from the date of application submission to the date of adoption of this authorizing Resolution.
5. The grant award in the amount of One Million Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Thousand One Hundred Forty-Eight Dollars and Zero Cents ($1,228,148.00) is hereby accepted (a copy of the award letter is attached hereto and made a part hereof.)
6. The Mayor of the City of Newark and/or his designee, the Business Administrator and /or the Interim Chief Sustainability Officer are hereby authorized to enter into and execute such grant documents and agreements with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, as may be necessary to receive the above-described grant funds.
7. The Municipal Council hereby ratifies its authorization of the execution of the grant documents and agreements from the date of their execution to the date of adoption of this authorizing Resolution.
8. No municipal funds are required for the receipt or acceptance of the grant funds.
9. No commitment of City resources or staff is required for the receipt or acceptance of the grant funds.
10. The City (“Grantee”) agrees to comply with all applicable Federal, State, and municipal laws, rules, and regulations in its performance pursuant to its agreement.
11. The Business Administrator and /or the Interim Chief Sustainability Officer shall cause to be filed fully-executed copies of the grant award letter, any grant agreement and any associated grant documents in the Office of the City Clerk.
STATEMENT
This Resolution ratifies and authorizes the Mayor of the City of Newark and/or his designee, the Business Administrator and /or the Interim Chief Sustainability Officer, and the actions taken, to submit the 2022 Natural Climate Solutions Grant, with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and further ratifies and authorizes the execution of the grant agreements necessary to receive the grant funds in the amount of $1,228,148.00 and further authorizes the acceptance of the grant funds.
Introduced and Passed on: December 6, 2023