skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Saturday, July 27, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Arson attacks paralyze French high-speed rail network hours before start of Olympics, the Obamas endorse Harris for President; A NY county creates facial recognition, privacy protections; Art breathes new life into pollution-ravaged MI community; 34 Years of the ADA.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Harris meets with Israeli PM Netanyahu and calls for a ceasefire. MI Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces backlash for a protest during Netanyahu's speech. And VA Sen. Mark Warner advocates for student debt relief.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

There's a gap between how rural and urban folks feel about the economy, Colorado's 'Rural is Rad' aims to connect outdoor businesses, more than a dozen of Maine's infrastructure sites face repeated flooding, and chocolate chip cookies rock August.

Experts: Plan for Effect of Climate Change on Wildlife Crossings

play audio
Play

Wednesday, February 15, 2023   

Wildlife crossings could be a path to a future where the climate has significantly changed the planet. Wildlife and climate experts are urging policymakers to plan for what they call "climate-informed" crossings.

More than a dozen experts have released a letter highlighting the effects climate change will have on these crossings to reduce roadway collisions - and the benefit this infrastructure will have as wildlife migrates northward.

Anna Wearn - director of government affairs with the Bozeman-based Center for Large Landscape Conservation - said extreme weather, like the floods around Yellowstone National Park last year, damaged traditional infrastructure.

"So for instance," said Wearn, "if a stream culvert is installed beneath a road without anticipating the magnitude of future floods, it may be built too small to properly control high flows or allow fish to pass through."

Wearn said crossings should be located in areas with the greatest potential to protect high-quality habitat so that wildlife can move across large landscapes.

In general, wildlife is expected to move toward the poles as the climate heats up in the coming decades. Congress's Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes $350 million for wildlife crossings.

Matt Skroch is project director for the U.S. Public Lands and Rivers Conservation at Pew Charitable Trusts. He noted that flooding has increased recently, and said building infrastructure to accommodate it can serve many purposes.

"We can think about how we can design those structures," said Skroch, "to not only facilitate the passage of water as flooding continues to occur in the future, but we can also think about how these culverts and bridges can also accommodate terrestrial wildlife movement as well."

He said the letter from experts is a message that wildlife crossings are important tools as the nation and states think about strategies to respond to climate change.

They've made some policy recommendations, including planning for long-term resilience and promoting equitable participation across governments and tribes.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts.




get more stories like this via email
more stories
According to the Tax Policy Center, for higher-income earners, sales taxes consume a lower share of their income than for other households. (Vitalii Vodolazskyi/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

As Nebraska state lawmakers convene for a special session on property tax reform called by Gov. Jim Pillen, groups are weighing in on the details …


play sound

Traveling around rural Minnesota can be difficult but in more than half the state, nonprofit transit systems are helping people get where they need …

Social Issues

play sound

Student loan forgiveness took center stage on Thursday at the American Federation of Teachers conference. The Biden administration has canceled more …


Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has introduced legislation to codify the Chevron Deference into law. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Recent Supreme Court rulings on air pollution are affecting Virginia and the nation. Climate advocates said the court overstepped its bounds in …

Health and Wellness

play sound

World Hepatitis Day is this Sunday, and for the Oregon Health Authority, it's an opportunity to promote its plan to eliminate hepatitis across the …

The Gender Shades project revealed facial recognition performed poorest for darker-skinned women, and performed best for lighter-skinned men. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Columbia County, New York, is implementing new facial recognition and privacy policies, following new upgrades to the county's surveillance cameras…

Health and Wellness

play sound

New York disability-rights advocates are celebrating the 34th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The 1990 …

Social Issues

play sound

As summer winds down and North Carolina students prepare to return to school, the focus shifts to the urgent need for better public education funding…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021