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Penn Township

2019

RETURN ON ENVIRONMENT STUDY

Penn Township’s rural character and quality of Life are facing the winds of change.

Nature is One of Penn Township’s Cultural Legacies

The forests, streams, wetlands and wildlife of Penn Township have been a major part of the area’s cultural legacy and historic pride for more than 300 years.

01.

Conservation Trust

South Mountain provides a striking visual backdrop in the daily lives of thousands who also depend on the landscape’s resources.

Conservation Trust

Conservation Trust

Article I, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution provides as follows:

“The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and aesthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania’s public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”

Pennsylvania has consumed more land per person than any

• ther state over the past 30
• years. Sprawl has been

accelerating the fragmentation and depletion of forests, wetlands and other open areas where natural system services

• ccur.

Cost of Sprawl Pennsylvania, 2010

For every dollar received from residential development, a township pays $1.16 to provide services.

Crompton, 2007 Trust for Public Lands

SPRAWL

Conservation Trust

Another impact from sprawl is the loss

• f critical habitat. Forty percent of

migrating birds are in “conservation need,”— meaning they lack adequate

• habitat. As bird populations decrease,

snake, rodent and insect populations increase.

Penn Township has many long-standing environmental problems.

Natural Conundrums Long-Term Problems

▪ Water pollution ▪ Flooding ▪ Sprawl ▪ Stormwater management ▪ Invasive plants ▪ Forest fragmentation ▪ Misuse of chemicals ▪ Bee collapse ▪ Air quality ▪ Climate change

Putting a dollar value

• n nature can help

solve 70%-100% of current problems.

Conservation Trust

Nature is an Invisible Economy

Because Mother Nature doesn't write receipts, nature's financial value is often overlooked or undervalued in policy debates, business decisions and personal choices.

02.

Conservation Trust

Open Space Affects Everyth rything

The first rule of ecology is that everything is connected to everything else. Whatever we do to natural habitats—good or bad, big or small—ripples through the economy.

Conservation Trust

Why a Return on Environment Study?

▪ Explain nature’s financial value in easy-to-understand terms; ▪ Convey the economic significance of protecting and restoring nature to policy makers, investors, and homeowners; ▪ Underscore nature’s connection to quality of life, public health, cost of living, economy, and sense of place; ▪ Can be immediately applied to policy decisions involving land use, economic development, infrastructure, water resources, tourism, and recreation; ▪ Bring stakeholders to the table to effectively make informed investment decisions; ▪ Expose new business opportunities.

Conservation Trust

Conservation Trust

COMMUNITIES THAT UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF NATURE HAVE A BETTER CHANCE OF BALANCEING GROWTH AND PROTECTION OF OPEN SPACES.

Nature is Serious Business

03.

FIGURE 1 Penn Township’s Annual Return on Environment

$31.14 million Natural system services $5.4 million Value of existing riparian buffers $4.3 million Outdoor recreation annual revenues $1.5 million Health care cost savings attributed to open space and exercise

Conservation Trust

IT IS DIFFICULT TO HAVE A STRONG ECONOMY WITHOUT A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT, PLENTY OF OPEN SPACE, AND QUALITY WATER AND HABITAT.

John Rogers / Keystone Conservation Trust

Conservation Trust

How are ROE values calculated? Avoided Costs Revenues Real Estate Premiums

Value Transfer U.S. Centers for Disease Control Surveys and IMPLAN Model Natural System Services Health Care Costs Related to Exercise Outdoor Recreation Assessment of Changes in Property Value Property Value

Avoiding costs for services that nature provides free of charge allows more money to circulate in the economy and create jobs.

Conservation Trust

What Have People Been Willing To Pay To Replace Nature’s Cost-Free Services?

Photo: John Rogers

Eco-Pricing

• Replacement costs
• Best practices
• Treatment
• Fines
• Tax benefits
• Conservation easements
• Management
• Financial incentives

• 1. Stormwater and flood protection
• 2. Water supply
• 3. Nutrient absorption
• 4. Pollination
• 5. Erosion prevention
• 6. Carbon sequestration
• 7. Air pollutant removal
• 8. Upland habitat
• 9. Aquatic habitat
• 10. Biological control

Natural System Services

Conservation Trust

If we destroy or disrupt nature, taxpayers have to pay to replace these services.

Photo: Kristy M Smith

Average ROE Cover Type: $2,810 Average Conservation Easement: $3,339 (PALTA 2017)

Developed land Cultivated field Pasture Developed open space Open water Working regenrating forest Less than 150 acre forest Urban forest Less than 750 acre forest 750 acres plus forest Floodplain forest Riparian forest and forested wetlands Urban wetlands Rural wetland Headwater forests and wetlands

ROE TOTAL LAND COVER VALUES

Conservation Trust

$16 million

Habitat

$.82 million

Pollination

$.64 million

Biological Control

$.32 million

Carbon Sequestration

$.18 million

Air Pollutant Removal

Penn Township’s

ANNUAL BENEFITS FROM FORESTS

Conservation Trust

$17,983,434/year

$5.4 million per year Riparian Buffers

Conservation Trust

Penn Township’s

ANNUAL WATER RESOURCE BENEFITS $7.7 million

Stormwater and flood control

$.2.1 million

Water supply

$2.5 million

Nutrient absorption

$.74 million

Aquatic resources

$1.3 million per year $13,154,381 per year

Demand for Outdoor Recreation Is Increasing

American Consumer Spending

The outdoor recreation industry is strong and growing, generating $887 billion annually in the United States and $29.1 billion in PA.

Conservation Trust

Outdoor Recreation

Activities people enjoy without hurting the environment. 1. Walking 2. Fishing 3. Hunting 4. Birding 5. Wildlife Watching 6. Camping 7. Paddle sports 8. Bicycling 9. Horseback riding

• 10. Hiking
• 11. Cross-country skiing
• 12. Jogging/Running
• 13. Nature study

Conservation Trust

Penn Township $4.3 million per year

INCREASING TRENDS IN OUTDOOR RECREATION PARTICIPATION

▪ Thirty-one percent of Pennsylvanians surveyed during the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources 2014 Outdoor Recreation Participation Survey said they planned to spend more time outdoors. ▪ About half of the region’s baby boomers plan to increase their outdoor activity, compared to 25 percent of their older counterparts. ▪ By 2025, millennials will make up 75 percent of the workforce, and these young professionals enjoy the outdoors and seek healthy and adventurous lifestyles.

Conservation Trust

Nature Affects The Cost of Health Care

Access to nature encourages exercise. People who exercise at least 1 day a week save money on health care costs. 18.3% exercise at least once a week and save $730 a year in health care costs. 31.2% exercise more than 2 days a week and save approximately $1,423 a year in health care costs.

(PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, 2014)

Conservation Trust

$1.5 million per year

Conservation Trust

PROXIMITY TO OPEN SPACE ADDS VALUE TO YOUR HOME

Homes within ¼ mile of open space Waterfront - 22% Urban - 15% Suburban - 9% Rural - 1%

04.

Nature is One of Penn Township’s Competitive Advantages

Nature provides the resources and venues that put Penn Township in a favorable or superior position for economic growth, quality of life, low cost of living and attractive sense of place.

Conservation Trust

Nature Impacts Economic Growth and Jobs

▪ Every company with a discharge permit is dependent on clean water at the source. ▪ Pure, naturally-filtered water is critical to bottling, pharmaceutical and technology companies in their business processes. ▪ Many businesses today want employees to have healthy lifestyles because active employees are happy, more creative, more productive and miss less work. ▪ Two of the fastest growing sectors of the economy are retirees and people working in knowledge- based industries. Increasingly, they are selecting communities with protected land and natural amenities. ▪ Since 1990, 90% of new jobs with good salaries are in the service sector. Many of these are footloose, able to locate anywhere. ▪ The quality of the environment impacts business location, attracts investment, stimulates tourism and recreation sectors and attracts wealth.

Conservation Trust

05.

Biological Diversity Is Central to Maximizing and Sustaining Nature’s Ecological and Financial Value.

Conservation Trust

Pennsylvania

Louisiana Waterthrush Wood Thrush Scarlet Tanager Part of an biological corridor of international importance

Simply stated, the loss of open space costs more than we know.

We Can’t Afford Not to Protect Penn Township’s Open Space

06.

Conservation Trust

ROE HELPS POLICY MAKERS MAXIMIZE BENEFITS WHILE MINIMIZING INVESTMENT.

Conservation Trust

Putting ROE Studies to Work

Businesses, governments, and households need to work together to manage open space in ways that result in the highest Return on Environment. Choices made about the environment today will have a dramatic impact on the future. USES: ▪ Comprehensive plans ▪ Prioritizing protection areas ▪ Green Infrastructure ▪ Riparian buffer zone ordinances ▪ Official map ordinances ▪ Zoning ▪ Site plan review ▪ Open Space Referendums ▪ Economic Development ▪ Tourism

07.

Conservation Trust

Penn Township

2019

RETURN ON ENVIRONMENT STUDY

It’s Just That Easy!