Some very cool news coming out of the Meadowlands Research and Restoration Institute (MRRI), the scientific arm of the NJSEA. The institute recently collected orthoimagery and video footage to promote the East Coast Greenway project’s mission.
The Greenway project sets out to bring to life the Jersey City and Hudson County Master Plans’ call for the development of an off-road route for the East Coast Greenway Maine-to-Florida trail. Developing the Harsimus Branch will significantly advance that route through Hudson County, linking historic sites, parks, and other open spaces. The Greenway will serve as a spine for a trail system.
MRRI’s drone mission focused on the Jersey City part of the project and covered part of the Essex- Hudson Greenway, the Bergen Arches and the Harsimus Branch and Embankment.
MRRI’s drone pilot took orthoimagery of the abandoned rail line to provide high resolution aerial imagery for researchers at Rutgers University to assess vegetation composition along the embankment and the Greenway. The orthoimagery is supported by an assessment of plant health, derived from VARI vegetation index.
Deliverables also included a video footage of the Greenway. The montage gives a bird eye’s view of the green line starting from the Hackensack River and ending at the 6th street waterfront in Jersey City.