JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is home to thousands of elk, mule deer, moose, pronghorn, and bighorn sheep. Wyoming’s public and private lands provide critical habitat for these animals, which are treasured by residents and visitors alike. With so many animals abound, wildlife can encounter roadways as they move to and from summer or winter ranges. To improve human safety and reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions by up to 90%, wildlife crossings are being built throughout the state in places where accidents are likely.
Wyoming continues to lead the way as a model for Greater Yellowstone Coalition‘s (GYC) work to construct wildlife crossings around the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. GYC is working to bring new solutions to the region that help keep our landscapes permeable to wildlife and safe for those who live and travel through here.
Tremendous progress is being made on planning and building wildlife crossings across the state. Earlier this spring, GYC helped sponsor the 2021 Wyoming Wildlife and Roadways Summit. The summit was well attended by highway engineers, wildlife biologists, and interested members of the public.
Wyoming Game and Fish Department and Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) shared updates on wildlife crossing projects around the state. You can listen to the recordings of the summit with these links: Day 1 recording and Day 2 recording.
GYC is also celebrating the successful completion of the Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon’s challenge to Wyoming citizens to buy 2,020 wildlife conservation license plates. On June 8, the governor awarded the plate numbered 2020 to a contest winner for his conservation ethic essay. Funds generated from the conservation plate will help finance overpasses, underpasses, fencing, and signage to prevent vehicle/animal collisions. Seeing these license plates around Wyoming continues to serve as a reminder of the value of wildlife and how important it is to reduce wildlife vehicle collisions is to Wyoming.
In Teton County, GYC is helping spearhead conversations to make the crossings along Highway 22-390 effective. They are engaged in discussions with Teton County, pathway advocates, and WYDOT to address the construction of crossings and accommodate suitable pathways. They proposed a system of fences, gates, and some novel technology using “electrocrete” (an electrified barrier for wildlife embedded in the concrete where pathways intersect fences). The plan remains for the installation of four wildlife underpasses in the 22-390 Snake River corridor, with construction anticipated to start in 2023.
In Sublette County, WYDOT has issued final plans for the Dry Piney project, which includes eight wildlife underpass crossing locations along Highway 189. The area has one of the highest rates of mule deer-vehicle collisions in the state. It is estimated that 3,000 mule deer, 300 to 500 pronghorn, 100 to 150 elk, and 50 to 100 moose cross this section of road annually. GYC helped move this project forward by securing a $14.5 million grant from the Federal Highway Administration, raising $400,000 in grants from the Volgenau, Knobloch, and National Fish and Wildlife Foundations, and worked with their nonprofit partners to create a matching fund opportunity through the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust.
