Public comment meetings open for draft of Wildlife Corridors Act
Darryl Lewis was driving on U.S. 64 south of Dulce at dusk after a day of hunting several years ago when his 1974 Chevy pickup slammed into an elk.
“One just jumped right out in front of me and totaled the front end,” said 59-year-old Lewis, a Santa Fe resident. The elk “got up and walked about 50 feet up the side of the hill and died right there.”
Lewis, who did not sustain any injuries, and his friend, who was driving in another vehicle behind him, called the Jicarilla Apache Nation’s Game and Fish Department and waited until help arrived.
Collisions with animals are common occurrences on New Mexico roadways.
They made up nearly 4 percent of the more than 231,000 crashes across the state between 2015 and 2019, according to the most current data from the New Mexico Department of Transportation.
Of the more than 8,850 crashes with animals during the four-year period, 53 percent involved deer; 15 percent, elk; and 12 percent, cattle.
To help reduce collisions between motorists and large animals, and improve the quality of natural habitats for wildlife populations, state lawmakers passed the Wildlife Corridors Act in 2019. It authorizes the Department of Transportation and the Department of Game and Fish to develop a plan — in partnership with tribal governments and with input from the public — for initiatives to warn drivers of wildlife populations and keep animals off the roadways.
The state agencies recently released a draft version of their plan and invited public comments during two virtual meetings, at 6 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday. Members of the public also can make comments by mail, email or phone.
“This plan identifies not only areas across the state with exceptionally high rates of wildlife collisions, but also areas that disrupt
migratory patterns of large animals,” said Matt Haverland, a wildlife coordinator for the Department of Transportation’s Environmental Bureau.
The plan focuses on six kinds of large animals: mule deer, elk, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, black bear and mountain lions.
According to the Department of Transportation, counties with the highest numbers of people involved in crashes with animals between 2015 and 2019 were San Juan County, with 1,285 people, and Grant County, with 1,185.
While 92 percent of people involved in animal crashes suffered no apparent injuries during the four-year span, according to the agency, 11 animal crashes resulted in human fatalities.
Haverland said the Department of Transportation knows about traffic safety, and the Department of Game and Fish knows about animal migrations, “So we just brought our own expertise to the table to help lead this project.”
The state agencies also contracted the Albuquerque-based environmental consulting firm Daniel B. Stephens and Associates.
The draft action plan targets regions of the state that are the most susceptible to animal crashes and proposes road signs to warn motorists of the increased danger. At the same time, proposed fences, lighting, culverts, underpasses and bridges would help channel animal migrations away from the open road.
Mark Watson, a terrestrial habitat specialist for the Department of Game and Fish, said the agency has been putting GPS collars on big game animals that provide real-time data on animal migration.
“By incorporating this data, and
data from tribes, military bases and wildlife researchers, we’ve been able to document where we think the greatest conflict areas are,” he said.
When funds become available to implement projects to prevent wildlife-vehicle collisions, the agencies will have a blueprint for the top six project areas in the state, he said. “There’s at least one project in every DOT district — there’s six districts in the state.”
Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque, who sponsored the Wildlife Corridors Act, said the plan is looking at projects that could cost up to $50 million.
She said the state could use a combination of reserve and nonrecurring funds, including federal pandemic relief aid and money from the massive federal infrastructure bill approved last year.
Haverland said traffic volume plays a significant role in the equation. “You’re going to see more collisions along areas that are more heavily trafficked.” He added there also are higher rates of incidents in areas with mountain ranges.
“Two of our top locations are in the Sacramento Mountains, on U.S. 70 near Bent, and also the Ruidoso area. Those are two of the top 11 hot spots,” he said. “Also Silver City, south of the Gila National Forest.”
According to the Department of Transportation, the time of day also contributes to the rate of animal crashes, with peak occurrences at 6 a.m. and 8 p.m.
Jean-Luc Cartron, a senior biologist with Daniel B. Stephens and Associates, said climate change will be an ever-increasing factor in big game animal migration, as their boundaries change with shifting vegetation.
“That’s going to affect where animals can find a home — so this problem of wildlife-vehicle collisions and habitat fragmentation is only going to get worse unless we do something,” he said.
After the public has weighed in on the action plan, the state agencies will publish a final draft, likely in the spring, Cartron said. He added the proposals only affect public lands — any mitigation efforts that involve private lands would be voluntary.
Stewart said she’d like to see the federal government pass similar legislation.
“Wildlife funnels right into Colorado, on our northern border. We also have plenty of wildlife that’s coming in from Mexico,” she said. “It’s important for us to look after the biodiversity of our state and ensure that we can live together with our wildlife.”
Vandee Crane, a former program manager of the nonprofit Youth Shelters & Family Services in Santa Fe, said she found a female bear that had been struck by a vehicle in the median on Interstate 25 near Santa Fe in 2013.
“I turned around in an emergency lane and went back north and pulled over to where the bear was,” said Crane, 39. “I saw that it was very injured and called [the Department of Game and Fish] and just sat with it until it expired.”
Crane, who is a descendant of Osage Nation and Eastern Band of Cherokee, lives along the same stretch of road where she found the bear, between Pecos and Las Vegas.
“I feel it’s really important — especially with all the moving into wildlife spaces — we have to make sure we’re taking care of them as well, as we encroach on their habitat,” she said.
‘This plan identifies not only areas across the state with exceptionally high rates of wildlife collisions, but also areas that disrupt migratory patterns of large animals.’
MATT HAVERLAND
Department of Transportation’s Environmental Bureau wildlife coordinator