In cooperation with the Southern Rockies Ecosystem Project (now a part of the Center for Native Ecosystems) and our Colorado Congressional representatives, we're working to support the Colorado Department of Transportation's effort to build a vegetated wildlife overpass on I-70 west of Vail Pass. This wildlife-only bridge would reconnect fragmented habitat, save human lives and provide a model for wildlife protection nationwide.
I-70 is often called the Berlin Wall to Colorado's wildlife, because it presents an almost uncrossable barrier to animals migrating between the southern and northern parts of the state. The overpass would be sited somewhere on the west side of Vail Pass, in an area has been identified as an important wildlife movement corridor; two reintroduced lynx have been killed by vehicles there in recent years.
Other stretches of I-70 see more animal-vehicle collisions, but this is the easiest place to build an overpass because no private land is involved (the Forest Service owns the land on both sides of the highway at this location). Our hope is that an overpass in this location will create public support for many more structures throughout the state.
Thanks to the efforts of SREP and WW, CDOT has received a federal appropriation of $420,000 to fund a feasibility study for the bridge. The West Vail Pass Habitat Linkage Team, guided by Felsburg, Holt & Ullevig, is currently collecting information and reports regarding wildlife movements, species abundance, distribution, and habitat preferences in the West Vail Pass area. This information will be used in determining the target species, identifying a biological location for the structure, and design criteria appropriate for those species. Engineering constraints and feasibility will also be considered when identifying the structure location.
SREP is the lead organization in this effort. We're playing a supporting role by promoting the concept through education and outreach to local governments, federal and state agencies, businesses and the public. We have also provided some cameras and staff support to SREP's Citizen Science Wildlife Monitoring program, which is collecting wildlife movement data in the Vail Pass and Shrine Pass areas.