Verizon Wins Governor’s Environmental Excellence Award for Its Habitat Restoration Work with New Jersey Audubon Society and the US Fish and Wildlife Service

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Basking Ridge, NJ (November 30, 2007): The Governor’s Office has announced that the Verizon Center in Basking Ridge, NJ, is the winner of the 2007 Governor’s Environmental Excellence Award in the “Healthy Ecosystems” Category for its work along the Upper Passaic River.

The award was presented at Drumthwacket, the official residence of Governor Jon Corzine, on Thursday, November 29, 2007 at a ceremony. John Szeliga, Verizon’s Field Director of External Affairs was there to accept the award.

Mr. Szeliga said, “I am so proud of my company, Verizon. The leadership at Verizon has recognized its responsibility and chosen the right path with the help of some talented and passionate partners. We hope that this can be a standard for others to emulate.”

Winners of the Award are judged by the NJ Department of Environmental Protection on the basis of documented environmental benefits, innovation and the long term impact of their projects.

Verizon partnered with the New Jersey Audubon Society and the US Fish & Wildlife Service for a habitat restoration project at its Operations Center. The company property borders a section of the Passaic River that has been given a “C-1” designation, the most sensitive classification for New Jersey open waters. Further downstream the Passaic River provides drinking water for roughly 800,000 people in northern New Jersey.

The property is also adjacent to a portion of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, a federally-owned preserve of over 7,000 acres operated by US Fish & Wildlife.

The project is focused on improving buffer protection along a stretch of 0.7 miles of the Passaic River that flows through the facility. Working through the “Partners in Fish and Wildlife” program Verizon restored 25 acres on its property that are home to various grassland, riparian and wetland habitats. They planted over 500 native trees and shrubs on the site and plan to plant another 500 in 2008. They installed more than 10 acres of native grasses and wildflowers and removed invasive non-native vegetation on the land. They have implemented a delayed mowing schedule to promote wildlife breeding and have instituted a policy of zero chemical application on the restoration areas.

In addition they installed sand pits for turtle nesting areas, a vernal pool for amphibian breeding, installed numerous bird nesting boxes and outlined a monitoring and Stewardship Plan to track future progress on the site. A Stewardship Plan considers all aspects of resource management and documents management decisions and practices designed to maintain the land in a productive and healthy condition for present and future owners.  It specifies actions that will increase the environmental and economic values of the land and the region. 

The benefits extend beyond habitat restoration. The site extends along more than 3,700 feet of the Passaic River. In addition to improving water quality in the river the restored area in less than a mile upstream from a New Jersey Natural Heritage Priority Site known as the “Great Swamp Macrosite”, an important area for the breeding of several threatened and endangered wetland species.

“Every day, we’re seeing more and more plants and wildlife return to this environmental treasure chest,” said Dennis Bone, president of Verizon New Jersey. “This is an exciting achievement for our company and the region and we hope other companies will initiate similar projects at corporate locations throughout the state.”

“The face of our landscape is constantly changing, and with increasing urbanization and more commercial development we see fragmentation and loss of critical habitats in our area,” explained John Parke, NJ Audubon Stewardship Director for the north New Jersey region. “Habitat loss is the greatest single factor adversely affecting wildlife populations today. The enhancements that Verizon has made at its Basking Ridge facility through the Partners Program are expected to have far-reaching benefits, not just for wildlife, but for the entire watershed and its communities as well.”

NJAS believes that the Verizon Habitat Restoration project could be used as a model for others to support a corporation’s possible desire to practice long-term guardianship of open space and natural resource protection.  NJAS also believes that Verizon’s decision to partner with NJAS and USF&W was a key element to developing a plan that sharpened their project focus while setting down the steps that lead toward accomplishing their goals.

By performing various conservation practices at the site, Verizon is demonstrating its support to better the environment.  As a landowner, Verizon is solidifying a symbiotic relationship with the community to foster environmental awareness and a conservation ethic while enhancing wildlife, natural systems and possibly local economics.  NJAS sees Verizon as the facilitator, not the patron. Thus, Verizon is leading by example and outwardly promoting a corporation’s responsibility to its community as the courier of progress and not the preachers of the typical corporate culture.

“Corporate landowners, through wise land stewardship, can enhance the ecological value of their properties for the benefit of their surrounding area,” commented Brian Marsh, private lands biologist with US Fish & Wildlife, “The Verizon Center in Basking Ridge has worked to become a good neighbor to the surrounding communities in Morris and Somerset Counties.”