All Who Supported 153-Acre Open Space Preservation Should Be Proud
To the Editor:
Many thanks to Town Topics for announcing the official opening of the 153-acre preserve [“Ribbon Cutting to Officially Open 153-Acre Green Space Preserve,” November 13, page 1]. As the former chair of the Princeton Environmental Commission (PEC), I remember the development plan, which consisted of multiple large homes, for this parcel coming before the commission. The commissioners’ hearts sank at the thought of this vital land being extracted. The loss of ~4,000 trees that partially consist of old-growth forest was only a fraction of its intrinsic value in the eyes of the commission.
I also remember former commissioner and Princeton University Ph.D. candidate Harrison Watson stepping up to lead efforts with our NJIT partners, Daniil Ivanov ’21 and Harleen Oza ’21 and their professor Dr. Zeyuan Qiu, an environmental economist and professor of environmental science and policy in the Department of Chemistry and Environmental Science, to report on the financial value of two of Princeton’s essential pearls in the Emerald Necklace. Although financial value is commonly performed for commercial products to properly price them in the marketplace, it is not at all common to do so for nature.
Guided through the woods by Dr. Patricia Shanley, a renowned forest ecologist, a Princeton resident, and a board member at the Ridgeview Conservancy, we gathered the sample data on the tree species and size in those forests, and used valuation programs and models to analyze the data to estimate the economic value of the ecosystem services provided by those land tracts.
These analyses and numbers gave Princeton a concrete idea of how important these forests are, and helped the expanded community to secure sufficient funds to preserve the 153-acres. PEC truly appreciated the support provided by Dr. Qiu and his students, as this was not only a win for a single municipality but for neighboring municipalities and more importantly, Mother Earth and her living ecosystems.
Although in my opinion land is priceless, PEC didn’t allow the lack of an ecosystem services price tag to be the hurdle in securing funds. As Wendy Mager, Friends of Princeton Open Space board president, mentioned during the ribbon cutting, anyone who supported this preservation should be very proud. And in my words it certainly takes a village, and I am grateful that this time around it was us humans offering reciprocal care to the Mother of us all!