Road Ecology Center

and habitat. Often, this can lead to expensive delays, lawsuits, and unnecessary loss of habitat. Streamlining project delivery and reducing unnecessary delays is important to state transportation agencies. By utilizing natural-resource data in early stages of planning, state transportation agencies can avoid, minimize, and mitigate early and avoid costly delays later in the life of their projects. As part of the federally funded State Wildlife Grants Program, all state fish and wildlife agencies have recently completed comprehensive, wildlife conservation strategies, called State Wildlife Action Plans. These Action Plans will prioritize efforts and maximize investments to protect the state’s natural resources. While fish and wildlife agencies are leading the charge, the aim is to create a strategic vision for conserving the state’s wildlife–not just a plan for the agency. Each Action Plan includes eight required elements, including “distribution and abundance of wildlife species” and “descriptions of locations and relative condition of key habitats and community types.” Many states produced maps of prioritized habitat throughout the state. Correspondingly, the new transportation bill, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) included provisions that integrate consideration of wildlife conservation into the transportation planning process. Under the new law, each metropolitan planning organization (MPO) and state department of transportation (DOT) will consult with resource agencies in developing long range transportation plans and compare the transportation plan with conservation maps or natural resource inventories–such as the new State Wildlife Action Plans. The State Wildlife Action Plans are an opportunity for states to adopt a proactive approach to habitat conservation and an effective tool for transportation planning. For the first time, transportation agencies will have access to comprehensive natural-resource data at the planning stage, rather than waiting until environmental review.