A popular recreation spot just north of New York City is now larger than ever.
The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation announced yesterday that it has completed its expansion of Fahnestock Memorial State Park.
Fahnestock serves an important market. The park is just a one-hour drive north of New York City via the scenic Taconic State Parkway.
A smaller cousin of nearby Harriman State Park and Bear Mountain State Park, Fahnestock now encompasses over 15,000 acres (about 6,000 hectares). The New York State parks authority said an additional 763 acres (300 hectares) of neighboring forest in the Hudson Highlands was annexed to Fahnestock.
The land purchase was made possible by the Highlands Conservation Act. Governor Kathy Hochul said the expansion of Fahnestock is an act the state is taking under the 30 x 30 Initiative, a global push to preserve 30% of the world’s land and waters by 2030. The official park expansion also appears to be timed to match the latest Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity underway in Cali, Colombia.
“Our state parks are some of New York’s most treasured resources, and I’m excited to expand Fahnestock State Park to better connect future generations with New York’s parklands,” Hochul said in announcing the move.
New York’s parks office said that even though the expansion of the park amounts to only a roughly 5% increase in Fahnestock’s area, the action is anyway significant because it “advances our goal to preserve biodiversity by protecting more natural habitat for wildlife in the Hudson Valley.”
“Protecting open space and expanding our parks helps to improve the environment, create much-needed space for outdoor recreation, and resist climate change,” Governor Hochul said.
New York is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its state park system this year.
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Park Info
Park Name:
Fahnestock State Park
Location:
New York, USA
More Information:
