Traffic buzzed by a small gathering just off Interstate 90, a major transportation thoroughfare cutting through Montana that also is an obstacle and often deadly challenge for elk, mule deer, pronghorns and many other wildlife species.
With that backdrop, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte put pen to paper and signed two new bills into law to supply vital funding for wildlife crossing structures. One of them establishes a wildlife highway crossings account, and the other directs a part of the state’s marijuana tax revenue into the account.
“Montana currently has the second highest per capita rate of wildlife-vehicle collisions in the United States. Wildlife crossings are structures, like the one behind me, that protect motorists and wildlife. It’s great to see Montana really leading the way through these landmark crossings,” said Gianforte.
Only a few yards away was the wildlife crossing project Gianforte referred to in his remarks. The Montana Department of Transportation (DOT) is building 10 miles of woven-wire high fencing on both sides of I-90 just east of Drummond to funnel wildlife away from the highway and toward underpasses. Improvements include wildlife fencing, jump-outs, cattle guard replacement and access gates—all designed to keep motorists safe and allow wildlife to better move across the landscape.
“We’ve been working on migrations for elk and other wildlife for a long time,” said Ryan Bronson, director of government affairs for the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, which supported the legislation. “Seasonal migrations are critical to species like deer, elk, pronghorns and moose. All of these iconic species move from one place to another, and they hit barriers. Our work happens on the landscape, but when we get up to the highway rights of way that end up being the barriers to migration movement, that’s where we work with organizations like the DOT.”
RMEF works with a variety of partners to place a conservation focus on land protection, habitat enhancement, research and mapping projects that conserve migration corridors and the habitat associated with them.
“It took a lot of collaboration between the conservation groups, the legislature and the administration,” said Montana Rep. Ken Walsh, who carried one of the bills. “I think that at the end of the day, you’re going to have a direct funding source from what appears to be a strong cash flow from the marijuana revenue tax and so I think we’ll be able to continue these projects long into the future and hopefully save a lot of vehicles and save a lot of wildlife.”
(Photo credit: Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation)