Comprehensive Regional Plan - Northwestern Indiana Regional ...

2040 CRP Summary / Environment and Green Infrastructure
GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
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BUILD THE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE NETWORK
Like “gray infrastructure” such as roads, sewers and power grids,
“green infrastructure” is an invaluable element of a region.
Examples include managed networks of natural lands, parks,
greenways and other open spaces that maintain natural
ecological processes and improve our quality of life. The
foundation of green infrastructure networks is their natural
elements, such as forests, wetlands and rivers, which work
together to sustain the natural environment and our people.
Planning for these networks should be conducted at all
geographic levels and include the following systems:
Regional Open Space
Northwest Indiana is renowned for its rich environmental
diversity, thanks in large part to our proximity to Lake
Michigan. The backbone of public and private open
spaces forms the core of the region’s vast ecological
diversity and provides opportunities for our enjoyment
of these resources. There exist today approximately 315
natural or recreational areas within Northwest Indiana
that are managed by a variety of government and private
entities. Open spaces throughout our region include:
Greenways - Lineal corridors of open space, either wateror
land-based, that provide recreational opportunities
and protect natural ecosystems.
Active Open Space - These include playing fields for
team sports and playgrounds and are largely government
owned and managed.
Passive Open Space - Found primarily in unincorporated
areas of the region that involve hiking trails and large
tracts of land set aside for conservation purposes.
There are many needs for increased open space identified
in the CRP. There are hundreds of acres of land brimming
with a variety of native plants and high-quality habitat
remnants. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources
recently performed an analysis that documented open
space access deficiencies in the Lake Michigan watershed,
and the 2010 Ped and Pedal Plan outlines a series of
prime corridors for future trail development. A number
of waterways also have been identified for increased
recreational use.