The New York State Parks system will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2024 and the New York League of Conservation

If the city is serious about reducing air pollution and tackling the climate crisis, then we need to do more to get people out of their cars and onto bicycles and other clean transportation modes, and we can only do that by creating a safe and robust network of protected bike lanes across the city. 

Parks are one of the City’s most valuable assets and we must be investing in them in order to fight climate change, protect public health, and bolster the safety and wellbeing of our communities. Parks provide numerous resiliency benefits, increasing cooling by reducing the urban heat island effect and fighting flooding through capturing stormwater runoff. Parks also clean our air, and absorb climate-change causing pollutants and greenhouse gasses. Lastly parks provide safe open spaces for recreation, an aspect highlighted during the height of the pandemic. To ensure parks can continue to provide these benefits, we must be investing heavily in parks operations and maintenance. 

On March 22nd, NYLCV testified at the City Council Preliminary Budget Hearing for the Committee on Parks and Recreation, and advocated for allocating 1.0% of the NYC Fiscal Year 2023 Budget to parks. As part of his campaign, Mayor Adams made a commitment to allocating 1.0% of next year’s budget to parks. However, the newly announced Preliminary Budget revealed that not only is the administration going back on their promised 1.0% amount, but that they are cutting $60 million from the FY22 budget and removing 3,500 essential park positions. We are calling on Mayor Adams and the City Council to reverse the cuts that have been proposed and invest critical resources into our beloved parks and green spaces. 

Following a record high level of turnover among City Council seats in addition to the Mayor, Comptroller, and four borough president seats being up for grabs since the implementation of term limits in 2001, there are new opportunities to make sustainability and environmental justice key priorities in the City. To ensure council members maintain their campaign promises of delivering crucial environmental policy, NYLCVEF, WE ACT and South Bronx Unite formed the Green Our City Now coalition. This coalition will hold elected officials accountable on their promises, by providing information and guidance on environmental policy priorities and tracking their environmental commitments.  

New York City’s parks and green areas not only bring the community together and give the city its unique character, but also serve as vital assets in environmental conservation. The preservation of these parks is one of NYLCV’s top priorities, and should be for NYC legislators as well. That’s why NYLCV joined New Yorkers for Parks and DC 37 to launch the Play Fair for Parks campaign. For the last few years, Play Fair has been pushing for the revitalization of these natural spaces to provide recreational opportunities for the community, improve environmental resiliency, and make the city more sustainable.

In the fight against climate change, carbon sinks play a vital role in reducing the amount of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere. These sinks, such as forests and wetlands, also host a variety of biodiversity, providing the foundation on which the climate can heal and recover. However, over 60 percent of New York State’s wetlands have been lost due to human development, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, putting already-fragile ecosystems at risk as greenhouse gasses are released into the atmosphere. 

Late last week City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams announced her appointees for committee chairs. The most important chairs to keep an eye on for sustainability, and building a greener city, are those for environmental protection, transportation, parks, sanitation, and resiliency. Housing, health, and finance are also important chairs that can help facilitate environmental legislation.