Wareham is among a handful of cities and towns awarded more than $50,000 in recycling grants through the Sustainable Materials Recovery Program Wareham is set to receive $2,000.

The grant money will fund activities and equipment that promote best practices in waste reduction programs. Wareham will receive the grant for sustaining existing recycling programs or facilitating new, low-cost initiatives.

“Recycling is an essential part of a healthy, eco-friendly community and I am very pleased that these local communities will benefit from the state’s recycling program,” said Senator Marc Pacheco (D-Taunton), founding chair of the Senate Committee on Global Warming and Climate Change. “[These] grants help limit the amount of solid and hazardous waste that comes out of schools and households.”

This year’s grants were presented alongside the announcement of a new statewide recycling education initiative to help cities and towns across the commonwealth with local recycling efforts.

The new recycling education initiative aims to teach residents how to identify and dispose of common recyclable household items. The initiative has provided more than $24 million in recycling programs since July of 2010.