Most people would agree that environmentalists tend toward optimism when they”™re not tending toward pessimism. But they are also realists, they would say, and it is in that spirit the Land Use, Energy and Environment Task Force, organized by the 2009 Quadricentennial Commission, on July 15 released its draft agenda on the future of land use, energy and the environment in the Hudson Valley.
It is full of smart growth ideas that make environmental sense, but the underlying logic, say the committee members who compiled the report, is that smart growth ideas increasingly make economic sense as well.
“CEOs and developers all over the country look to the natural beauty of the Hudson Valley and our quality of life as major assets that would attract them here to develop manufacturing centers for innovative industries,” said Ned Sullivan, president of Scenic Hudson and co-chairman of the task force. “We really have common ground between those who advocate for green space and those who want to see jobs created. We are all in this together.”
The report offers 10 propositions buttressed by recommendations on how to achieve them by serving as guidelines to development in the Hudson Valley, which, in the group”™s vision, recognizes a healthy economy and healthy environment are both essential to a prosperous future.
The report proposes:
- creating “economically sustainable” urban centers with key water sewer and transport infrastructure, surrounded by permanently protected open space and working farms;
- protecting and preserving undeveloped land resources, encouraging collaborative and regional land use review;
- revitalizing the Hudson River’s waterfronts while becoming a leading center to fight climate change through green building construction and adapting existing infrastructure;
- improving Hudson Valley air and water quality;
- developing clean and renewable sources of energy and creating conditions to allow for healthy fish, wildlife and habitat while improving access to the Hudson shoreline for boating and recreation; and
- developing public support for sustained environmental protection.
The draft propositions were researched and compiled by a task force populated with several regional planners from county governments and the nonprofit sector as well as from environmental groups. It also included Michael Oates, president and CEO and Marissa Brett, vice president, of the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp., who were unavailable for comment.
The effort is part of an ongoing legacy project from last year”™s anniversary celebrations of Henry Hudson and Samuel de Champlain”™s voyages of discovery and of Robert Fulton”™s steamboat breakthrough.
The Quadricentennial Commission organized a listening tour last autumn that shaped work done in six major areas of interest to residents and businesses: agriculture, land use, transportation, culture and education, economic development, and finally, “mechanisms for action” to examine ways to promote regional wellbeing. Over the summer, reports will be issued on each topic at the interactive website, OurHudson.org, which is designed to spark dialogue.
