Highway Construction That Considers Animals

The practice of keeping nonhuman animals and their needs in mind during development and construction of human projects has come up around here a few times lately. In early August, we looked at some interesting posts from Emily at the Stop Global Warming blog, on constructing bat habitats, and Glenn of Liberation BC, on proposed high-rises for urban animals. And later that same month, Glenn posted again on the topic, this time regarding underpasses and overpasses designed specifically for animals.

Some current happenings in Colorado fall right into this latter category. A wildlife advocate in that state is trying to make sure humans do their part to protect and accommodate their fellow animals along a highway where animals are routinely hit and killed by vehicles. Beyond seeking a nighttime speed limit, Frosty Merriott is also calling for overpasses and underpasses where animals' natural migration routes intersect with the highway -- the idea being that larger animals can travel over the highway while smaller ones can cross safely below.

Merriott is meeting with his state representative on Friday to push for these measures and has asked folks from the Colorado Department of Transportation, the Colorado State Patrol, and the Division of Wildlife to join them as well. How encouraging would it be if advocates succeeded in making these accommodations and protections a reality, if this sort of consideration for our fellow animals became a trend?

And though what will come of the overpass/underpass suggestions is yet to be seen, Merriott is already making some progress: a representative from the state's transportation department told journalists that tunnels already running underneath the highway had been slated to be closed off, but they are now being left open for the benefit of small animals, at Merriott's urging.

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Photo of wildlife overpass in Canada retrieved from Wikimedia Commons