Archinect - News 2024-11-08T07:39:23-05:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/150050056/rpa-report-envisions-new-jersey-s-meadowlands-as-the-first-climate-change-national-park RPA report envisions New Jersey’s Meadowlands as the first "Climate Change National Park" devingannon 2018-02-14T19:30:00-05:00 >2024-03-15T01:45:58-04:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/71/71l2x0z7x0qkyjtg.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><em><p>Released last fall, the Regional Plan Association&rsquo;s (RPA) Fourth Plan includes 61 recommendations focused on improving and expanding the area&rsquo;s deteriorating infrastructure, transportation, and affordability, much of which revolves around climate change and its transformation of the region</p></em><br /><br /><p>Released last fall, the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.rpa.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Regional Plan Association</a>'s&nbsp;(RPA) Fourth Plan includes 61 recommendations&nbsp;focused on improving and expanding the area&rsquo;s deteriorating infrastructure, transportation, and affordability, much of which revolves around <a href="https://archinect.com/features/tag/480761/climate-change" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">climate change</a> and its transformation of the region. According to the report, more than one million people and 650,000 jobs are at risk&nbsp;of flooding due to <a href="https://archinect.com/news/tag/614677/rising-sea-levels" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">rising sea levels</a>. In the plan, the RPA ambitiously&nbsp;<a href="http://fourthplan.org/action/meadowlands-national-park" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">recommends</a>&nbsp;that the New Jersey Meadowlands, 21,000 acres of low-lying wetlands, becomes a national park&nbsp;as a way to mitigate impacts of climate change. Designating the region&rsquo;s largest wetland as a national park would restore the natural habits, protect nearby communities, and create a recreational space, becoming, the report says, a &ldquo;Climate Change National Park.&rdquo; The Meadowlands National Park would adapt and grow with climate change by drawing and redrawing the boundaries of the park as coastlines change.</p> <figure><p><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/43/436jqcdnm2kx3jp9.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/43/436jqcdnm2kx3jp9.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></p></figure><p>By the end of this century, flooding a...</p>