LIBERTY STATE PARK


View From Liberty State Park

Restoration Initiative:

Liberty State Park is an extraordinary and unique public resource. With the Manhattan skyline, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island as a spectacular backdrop, it is also one of New Jersey's most dramatic parks. Liberty State Park is also an important first step of an ambitious restoration process for the Port District section of the Hudson-Raritan Estuary ecosystem restoration study, is partnering with the United States Army Corps of Engineers on this restoration project.

Liberty State Park was formerly the rail yards of the Central Railroad of New Jersey (CRRNJ). After the bankruptcy of the CRRNJ in 1969, the local community advocated for the protection of the land and historic rail terminal. The State of New Jersey has spent the past 30 years acquiring the land, planning and building a park infrastructure that is suitable for public recreation and protecting the associated habitats. With approximately five million visitors annually, the park's development has been an extraordinary success.

The restoration of the 234 acre interior section, currently fenced off and inaccessible, will provide substantial benefit to all 1,121 acres by linking previously developed and restored, but isolated, components of the park into one cohesive whole. The four components of the restoration project include the creation of approximately 46 acres of salt marsh, the creation and/or enhancement of approximately 26 acres of freshwater wetlands, the creation of approximately 50 acres warm weather grasslands and the enhancement of approximately 100 acres of urban successional northern hardwoods and maritime shrub assemblages.

Salt marshes, which once lined the harbor, were gradually eliminated during the industrial revolution. These endangered remnant pocket marshes exist primarily between piers throughout the harbor. They provide invaluable wildlife habitat in the center of the most densely populated area of the country. The creation of 46 acres of salt marsh at LSP will significantly enhance the ecological value of salt marshes in the harbor. One of the largest remaining marshes is within Liberty State Park, and has been included in New Jersey's Natural Areas system. In addition, a four-acre wetland system has been created as mitigation for waterfront development at a property adjoining the park, and is functioning at a high level. These two sites provide excellent reference for the proposed salt marsh and will help to ensure the success of the project.

Freshwater wetlands were eliminated from the Bayonne/Jersey City peninsula, long ago. In fact most of the New York metropolitan area had eliminated these wetlands to make way for development. The creation/enhancement of 26 acres of Freshwater wetland systems will help to restore this locally endangered habitat. The proposal calls for the creation of a series of three wetlands, one of which will provide for deepwater habitat, currently absent from the park. In addition, by re-grading the southwest corner of the park with the material excavated from the proposed salt marsh, the watershed of the existing 23 acres of seasonally flooded wetlands will be significantly increased. The improved hydrology combined with minimal control of invasive exotic species will greatly enhance the ecological value of these wetlands. The excavated material from the salt marsh will be used to create approximately 50 acres of warm weather grasslands in the southwest corner of the site. This use was determined to be the least cost disposal option for the excavated material. With the disappearance of agriculture from the area, and much of the state, this type of habitat is also considered threatened in New Jersey. The warm weather grasses will provide forage and breeding areas for many passerine and raptor species. They will enhance the potential for successful nesting of Circus cyaneus, a state listed species that has unsuccessfully nested in the park for the past several years.

The remainder of the site, currently dominated by northern hardwood tree species and maritime shrubs assemblages, will be used as a demonstration urban forest. Its management will focus on assemblage development and the control of invasive species, especially portions closest to the tidal marsh and freshwater wetland that will act as protective buffers for these rare habitats. The urban forest is one of the largest contiguous areas of naturally established successional hardwoods in the metropolitan area. The restoration of maritime forest at this site will provide a unique opportunity for a long-term study of urban forestry.

With over five million visitors annually, two educational facilities, and existing relationships with several universities, Liberty State Park provides an unparalleled forum for the study and enjoyment of public open space. The proposed project will undoubtedly receive national attention and could be used as a model for the integration and maintenance of diverse habitat structure in an urban context.

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