Greenbelt places a high priority on providing safe and accessible trails for visitors to our properties across Essex County. But climate change is resulting in more severe rain and wind events, and these events are impacting the miles of trails we manage.
The most recent example was trail and tree damage wrought by a severe wind and rain event in early January 2024, when over a 24 hour period 3-4 inches of rain fell with sustained winds over 30 mph with gusts over 50 mph.
In the aftermath of that storm, a steady stream of reports came to our attention, via the phone, email, the GreenbeltGo App and first hand site visits.
The saturated ground meant all the runoff from the rain was directed downhill and in many instances down trails that could not handle the volume and velocity of the runoff.
The worst of it occurred at the Donovan Reservation in Hamilton where deep channels were cut into gravel trails and literally tons of material was eroded away.
In addition, entire trees toppled over at many properties as their root systems sat in over saturated soft soils and simply could not support the above ground weight of the tree.
Climate change is forcing Greenbelt's stewardship team to be adaptable and ready for these catastrophic events. They are unpredictable. They take time away from normal stewardship work and they can have a real expense.
For instance, it will cost thousands of dollars to repair the trail and road damage at the Donovan Reservation. And we have easily spent over 40 staff hours on tree cleanup in 2024.
We endeavor to be proactive regarding climate change impacts by improving trails for runoff and doing preventative tree work, but the “new normal” is to be prepared for more significant rain and wind events that will impact Greenbelt land and add extra work for the stewardship team