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Defenders Supporters Help Secure Safe Passage for Colorado Wildlife!

Wildlife Crossing in Baniff (Photo: Trish White, Defenders of Wildlife) In addition to killing thousands of animals, collisions with wildlife cost Americans over $8 billion and claim hundreds of human lives each year. Thankfully, there’s something we can do to help stop this terrible cycle.

In early 2009, Defenders of Wildlife called on our supporters to take action to urge their state’s Governor and Department of Transportation to make safe passage for wildlife a top priority by devoting a portion of the infrastructure improvement funding it receives as part of the federal government’s stimulus package to the construction of wildlife crossings.

Colorado’s wildlife is fortunate to have advocates like ours! Thanks in large part to the more than 1,300 Defenders activists who used their voices to advocate for safe passage for wildlife in Colorado, two “shovel-ready” projects will be built using recently approved federal stimulus funds.

These strategically-placed wildlife crossings and fencing will allow deer, elk, bears, mountain lions, imperiled Canada lynx, and other animals to travel safely under or over the highway and access the food, mates and quality habitat they need to survive.

In other states and in Canada, wildlife crossing structures and fencing have been shown to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions by more than 80%!

It’s a win-win situation. By making smart investments in wildlife crossings now, we will save millions of dollars each year, boost our local economies by creating jobs, and, most importantly, save lives.

And, as the effects of climate change become more challenging, it will become even more important for species that are being driven to higher elevations to be able to travel safely through the landscape.

Thanks to the support of our dedicated Colorado supporters and help from our partners at the Western Environmental Law Center, we were able to successfully advocate for high quality wildlife passage and save the lives of thousands of animals in Colorado.

This is an exciting victory and shows just how much of an impact wildlife supporters can have on how their state allocates important transportation funding.