{"id":144437,"date":"2025-08-19T17:22:42","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T21:22:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=144437"},"modified":"2025-08-19T17:22:42","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T21:22:42","slug":"northampton-county-key-findings-from-the-2025-return-on-environment-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=144437","title":{"rendered":"Northampton County Key Findings from the 2025 Return on Environment Study"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>[Northampton County, PA]\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Northampton County Executive Lamont G. McClure announced today that the County\u2019s 2025 Return on Environment study shows open space, parks, trails, and farmland generate more than $434 million in benefits every year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHere in Northampton County, we have always recognized that our natural lands, parks, and trails are more than just scenery; they are essential infrastructure,\u201d said McClure. \u201cToday, I am here to show you exactly what these investments are delivering, and the value is staggering.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Since 2006, Northampton County has invested more than $20 million to safeguard open spaces. Since 2018 alone, the County has awarded $9.2 million in grants, preserved over 600 acres, and added another 339 acres to its park system.<\/p>\n<p>Key findings of the report include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>$436 million generated annually by outdoor recreation, supporting nearly 2,000 jobs<\/li>\n<li>$37 million in annual savings from replenishing water supply<\/li>\n<li>$48 million in natural flood protection each year<\/li>\n<li>$85 million in air pollution removed annually by trees<\/li>\n<li>$21.7 billion added to total home value across the County<\/li>\n<li>$38.3 million in agricultural output supporting more than 700 jobs<\/li>\n<li>$9\u201320 million in healthcare savings each year from active lifestyles connected to parks and trails<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cThe return on our environment is not just ecological, it is financial,\u201d McClure emphasized. \u201cIt\u2019s clear: people want to live near green spaces, and that demand translates into measurable economic benefits.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese numbers confirm what we have always believed: protecting land is not an expense; it is one of the smartest investments we can make,\u201d McClure concluded. \u201cEvery dollar we put into open space pays dividends in cleaner water, healthier residents, stronger farms, higher property values, and a more resilient economy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Information provided to TVL by:<br \/>\nNorthampton County Executive Office<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[Northampton County, PA]\u00a0\u2013 Northampton County Executive Lamont G. McClure announced today that the County\u2019s 2025 Return on Environment study shows open space, parks, trails, and farmland generate more than $434 &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=144437\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Northampton County Key Findings from the 2025 Return on Environment Study<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":144438,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[69,5738,482],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-144437","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-valley","category-northampton-county","category-press-release-2"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/northampton-release.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144437"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=144437"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144437\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/144438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=144437"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=144437"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=144437"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}