Our state parks and forests, like the Mount Tom State Reservation, have been getting the short end of the stick lately.
Decades of budget cuts for the Department of Conservation and Recreation [DCR], the agency that oversees our parks, has led to $1.2 billion worth of desperately needed maintenance projects going undone. This means visitor centers and other structures are often out of date or poorly maintained. Trails and roads are falling into disrepair, and our parks across Massachusetts are, in general, looking pretty shabby.
It hasn't always been that way. Massachusetts was the first state in the nation to create a system of public parks, preserving some of our most beautiful wild places like the Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation and Skinner State Park, and setting aside green spaces in cities and communities across the state. Our parks, forests and reservations improve our quality of life, support local businesses and give us a place to meet neighbors, walk dogs and spend quality time with our children.
Thanks to the wisdom and foresight of past leaders and citizens, we have inherited an amazing park system. All in all, Massachusetts has the sixth largest state park system in the nation, a remarkable feat for such a small state. This system is one of the gems of our Commonwealth. Unless things change quickly, our children will inherit a parks system that is in much worse shape than the one we grew up with. Massachusetts now ranks 48th out of the 50 states in per capita spending on parks. Given the size of our parks system, it is easy to see why our parks are in the state they are in today.
There is still time to fix our ailing parks and leave them in better shape than we found them, but we have to act quickly. As students can recognize, procrastinating only leads to stress and all-nighters come finals. DCR, struggling with a budget several sizes too small, is much like the student who puts off much of his homework, homework equal to $1.2 billion of maintenance. If we don't reinvest in our parks now, it is only a matter of time before the DCR realizes that the final exam is tomorrow, and they haven't cracked the book.
While Governor Patrick is not the cause of the problems we see in our parks, he has inherited a beautiful parks system that has been neglected for too long. On the campaign trail he promised to put an end to this neglect and restore our parks to world-class status. If he is to accomplish this, the first step is to make sure that the environmental bond includes enough money to eliminate the maintenance backlog over the next decade and get the parks back on track.
Governor Patrick has before him a huge opportunity to invest in Massachusetts' natural legacy. If he can get this right, future generations of walkers, joggers, hikers, fishermen and campers across the Commonwealth will be thankful.
Vanessa Wright
Campaign Coordinator, MASSPIRG - UMass Amherst Chapter
Winston Vaughan
Field Organizer, Environment Massachusetts
Andy Carroll
UMass Outing Club
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