Integrating Wildlife Action Plans with Transportation Planning and Projects: A First Look

Putten, Mark Van and David G. Burwell This paper provides a preliminary report on an ongoing project to identify immediate opportunities for pilot projects to implement relevant portions of state wildlife action plans through federal-state transportation planning and projects using transportation funding. Federal administrative actions and programs include: (1) “context-sensitive solutions,” which seeks to calibrate project planning and design to the surrounding community and natural context; (2) “exemplary ecosystems,” which recognizes projects and programs that support healthy ecosystems as a defined project outcome; (3) “Eco-Logical,” a new tool to assist transportation planners in adopting an ecosystem-based approach to project planning and development; (4) “green highways,” an inter-agency initiative in the Mid-Atlantic region to promote watershed protection, stormwater management and recycling in transportation project development and system management; (5) “transportation enhancements,” which is a separately-funded program to achieve community and environmental goals, including efforts to “reduce vehicle-caused wildlife mortality while maintaining habitat connectivity;” and, (6) new requirements that state transportation agencies incorporate conservation maps and plans, as well as natural and historic resource inventories, into transportation plans.

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