The New Jersey Clean Communities Council (NJCCC), which runs the state’s litter abatement program, has presented the City of New Brunswick’s Teen Litter Patrol with its 2025 Innovative Program Award.
This honor recognizes the program’s success in cleaning local streets, fostering youth employment and educating future environmental stewards. The Teen Litter Patrol originated in the spring of 2022 when a concerned local high schooler wrote to New Brunswick Mayor James Cahill, suggesting the city hire teenagers to collect litter over the summer and help beautify the city.
Caption: (Left to Right) NJCCC Vice Chairman John Wohlrab, New Brunswick Recreation Leader William Malloy and New Brunswick Clean Communities and Recycling Coordinator Erin Maguire and NJCCC Chair Linda Doherty
The program has continued each summer since its inception, hiring a group of 10 to 15 local teens on a part-time, minimum-wage basis. For many participants, the patrol is their first job. Under the supervision of Recreation Leader William Malloy and Clean Communities and Recycling Coordinator Erin Maguire, the employees assist with citywide litter cleanups, with many of the 41 total teens hired returning for multiple summers.
“The program has impacted a significant number of New Brunswick teens,” said Marguire. “It feels good to finally be recognized for the good work these teens are doing in the city they call home.”
What makes the program innovative is its educational component, which includes field trips to sites like Bayshore Recycling in Woodbridge and the Middlesex County Landfill in East Brunswick, providing hands-on learning in solid waste management.
The teens have also tackled illegal dumping hotspots, including creeks along the city’s borders, pulling out materials like mattresses and tires. To date, the collective effort of the Teen Litter Patrol has yielded significant results: 996 bags (24,900 pounds) of trash, 517 bags (8,375 pounds) of recycling, and the comprehensive cleaning of 706 city blocks.
“The New Brunswick Teen Litter Patrol is a shining example of how combining youth initiative with focused municipal support can create profound, lasting environmental and community change,” said NJCCC Executive Director JoAnn Gemenden. “We are proud to recognize this model program that engages the younger generation and molds positive, long-term anti-litter behaviors.”
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ – November 24, 2025