The National Wildlife Federation is partnering with organizations in the First State to expand community green spaces.
The Claymont Coalition for Environmental Justice and New Castle Prevention Coalition join the National Wildlife Federation to help expand and establish green spaces that strengthen climate resilience.
The initiative is fueled by $400 million from Bezos Earth Fund, which is sending $5.5 million to Claymont and the Route 9 area.
The Claymont Coalition for Environmental Justice is getting $1.5 million to remediate and restore a brownfield at the old Claymont Steel facility - turning it into what will be known as Riverfront Park.
National Wildlife Federation president and CEO Collin O’Mara explains how money will be used in Claymont at that site.
"The river is right there, but it's never really been accessible. So part of this is creating that connectivity, and then in hopes of creating a beautiful riverfront park similar to what we have in places like the city of Wilmington like the Russell Peterson Refuge where you have great amenities, the Markell Trail. We can have a similar set of amenities right there in Claymont for the residents up there," said O’Mara, the former DNREC Secretary.
Before the park is in place, a large-scale remediation needs to be done as well as an ecological restoration of the area.
The New Castle Prevention Coalition receives $3 million to restore eight neighborhood-based parks on 300 acres in the Route 9 corridor supporting community gardens, native plant gardens and educational exhibits.
That area will also see nature trails and tree canopies to reduce heat and pollution.
"So this is the way to address historical communities that have disproportionally suffered from pollution from industrial facilities for generations, and in some cases the facilities are long gone but the pollution is still there in the soil, in the waterways,” said O’Mara. “So I think it's a way to address historical injustices and also create some remarkable opportunities to improve community health and improve recreation in these historic communities."
The Bezos Earth Fund’s Greening American Cities initiative commitment to create more equitable access to urban green spaces with more parks, trees and community gardens runs through 2030.
