N.J. promotes unlikely eco-tourism site: Rehabiltated Meadowlands showcase nature (AP)

From Associated Press, as seen in USA Today:

By Janet Frankston, Associated Press Writer

NEWARK, N.J. — New Jersey's Meadowlands conjures images of swamps, burning landfills, industrial wasteland and, perhaps, the final resting place of Jimmy Hoffa.
Not to be deterred, the state is trying to make the area less than five miles west of Manhattan into a destination for tree-hugging tourists.

The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission plans Tuesday to release a 72-page color guide to bird watching and fishing in the Meadowlands and wildlife trails in the Hackensack River Watershed.

"The Meadowlands area is a hidden gem," Susan Bass Levin, commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs. "People don't think of it as a place for wildlife and birding, but it is."

State officials are trying to promote "eco-tourism" — conservation-minded outdoor travel — and generally identified more with lush, faraway destinations such as Costa Rica or the Galapagos Islands.

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2006-08-08-meadowlands-nj_x.htm