Only this one is a race against time. The total amount of land in New Jersey comprises about 5 million acres. Roughly 3 million of them have been either developed or preserved. That leaves 2 million acres of land that is still to be decided upon. As much as we gain from new homes and new businesses, we lose out when development occurs haphazardly.
Suburban sprawl eats away at our precious open space and clogs our roads.
We need open space to help clean our air and water, put food on our tables, and provide opportunities for recreation and tourism. For the sake of our families today and tomorrow, we need to make sure that at least half of New Jersey s remaining land continues to be undeveloped. I announced this week at my inauguration a goal of preserving 1 million acres of open space and farmland within the next decade. I pledge to work on acquiring at least 300,000 of those acres during my administration. Preserving this land may not be easy, but I think you will agree it needs to be done.