There’s money on the table, and the V.I. Waste Management Authority is eager to get rid of it – if the projects seeking the cash serve a community benefit by improving the environment.

The funds are available through the authority’s Community Enrichment Grant Program. At a series of meetings this week WMA officials explained to residents how they can qualify for the program. Friday Emmeline Simmonds, the grant coordinator for the St. Croix district, explained the program at a public meeting at the WMA’s office at Estate Williams Delight. A similar hearing was held at Charlotte Amalie High School on St. Thomas.

The CEG program makes $50,000 available for each of the territory’s three districts – St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John. The grants are awarded on two cycles a year, and the deadline for submitting applications for the current funding cycle is July 1, Simmonds said.

The programs has been in operation since about 1995, she said. During the last cycle, the St. Croix district received 18 applications. She said the review committee goes through the project and keeps awarding them until the money is gone.

Simmonds said the committee considers how wide an impact a project might have, how many people are impacted.

The goal of the program is to provide opportunities for youth groups, schools, non-profits, churches, community organizations and others to take an active role in improving the environment of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The funds cannot be used for salaries, research, fundraising or operating expenses, Simmonds said, but are mostly for purchasing equipment for projects.

Eligible projects must meet one or more of the following categories: composting, landscaping beautification of public areas, litter abatement projects and cleanup, wastewater education, solid-waste education, environmental education events and/or "reduce, reuse, recycle activities and programs."

Further information can be obtained by calling 778-7657 on St. Croix or 777-3073 on St. Thomas or St. John.

Applications, which must be received by VIWMA no later than July 1, can be picked up at:

• St. Thomas: 9500 Wheatley Center II, Charlotte Amalie.
• St. John: Administrator’s Office, Cruz Bay.
• St. Croix: The Greenhouse.