Gov. Deval Patrick failed to deliver on his promise to stand
up for our state forests and parks when he released his budget recommendations
Wednesday.
Despite Massachusetts
ranking 48th in the nation in per capita spending on parks and recreation, Gov.
Patrick neglected to include an additional $10 million for our state forests
and parks system, a promise he made during his campaign last fall.
While turning our forests and parks around will take long-term investment
and stewardship, the governor missed a critical first step in the right
direction this week. Without adequately funding the routine maintenance and
operation of our state forests and parks, we can only expect the estimated $1.6
billion backlog of major capital repairs to grow.
As home to the first public park in the nation, Massachusetts has a long legacy of
preservation and environmental leadership. Developed over centuries, our state
forests and parks system contains a bounty of beautiful sanctuaries and
recreational havens. In the Berkshires, we enjoy public treasures from the
waterfalls of Windsor State Forest
in Williamsburg and the expansive woods of October Mountain
in Lee to the old-growth forests of Savoy
Mountain in Florida
and the marble arch of Natural Bridge State Park
in North Adams.
These jewels and others in the Massachusetts
state forests and parks system support dozens of rare species and critical
natural communities, boast champion tree sites and exemplary old-growth
forests, undisturbed for centuries. Our public parks and forests annually
attract tens of millions of visitors who walk, play, camp, bike, hike and
otherwise enjoy these natural resources.
Unfortunately, these local favorites, like our legacy, are deteriorating.
Many of our public treasures are suffering from chronic neglect, mismanagement
and understaffing that in some cases have led to visible decay, safety issues
and environmental damage.
As we retreat into the woods of the Berkshires, too often we find ravaged,
unmarked or littered trails, graffiti-covered rocks and decaying facilities.
Too rarely do we find park rangers, trail maps and educational and cultural
programs. With insufficient funding, public treasures are poorly maintained,
underutilized, inadequately patrolled and left to deteriorate.
More than a century after Massachusetts
established the first regional park system, we have fallen from leader to last.
In our efforts to protect our heritage, to keep people here for generations and
attract new residents to the commonwealth, we cannot ignore the natural and
recreational resources in our back yards.
Our state forests and parks not only support ecologically valuable natural
resources but also contribute significantly to quality of life and economic
prosperity in the commonwealth. People value recreational opportunities and
open space and consider access to natural and recreational resources when
choosing where to live.
A study in 2003 conducted for the Boston Foundation and the Greater Boston
Chamber of Commerce found that access to outdoor activities is the second most
important factor in decisions by recent college graduates on whether to stay in
the area, second only to job availability. According to a quality of life
survey conducted for Massachusetts Institute for a New Commonwealth,
access to beaches, oceans and mountains is one of the state's three most
desirable features.
Think for a moment about those you know in the Berkshires. Without the
mountains, forests and open space, would they choose to stay? Would you? By
ignoring our forests, parks and beaches, we not only jeopardize natural
resources and our quality of life, we also turn our backs on our legacy of
leadership and our heritage.
With Gov. Patrick's misstep this week, we now hand the future of our forests
and parks to the state Legislature in the hopes that they, with the leadership
of the Legislative Parks Caucus, will stand up for public treasures and deliver
the resources they need and deserve.
Jen Baker is an advocate with Environment Massachusetts, the new home of
MassPIRG's environmental work.
