Project to protect wildlife moves to next phase

The Highway 20 corridor between Sisters and Suttle Lake is a diverse landscape dotted with vast stands of ponderosa pines, leafy aspens, horse camps, a butte, bucolic meadows, and wildlife. Anywhere from 350 to 600 mule deer and elk are killed annually along the stretch from collisions with vehicles.

That's about 90 for every mile of the corridor we learned from Cidney Bowman, wildlife passage coordinator for Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). In discussing the issue with The Nugget Bowman elaborated: "And for every one animal collected, there could be two or three times as many who are badly injured and who limp off to the forest only to die there from their injuries."

For years wildlife biologists and concerned groups have imagined ways to protect wildlife and motorists as they traverse the busy highway which easily sees 10,000 vehicles per day, a number growing swiftly.

Photo courtesy Colorado DOT

This wildlife crossing on U.S. Highway 160 in Colorado is typical of a two-lane wildlife passage overcross.

Ideas ranging from tunnels to bridges for migrating wildlife have taken to the drawing board. Formed in 2022, the Bend to Suttle Lake Wildlife Passage Initiative is a group of state and federal agencies, nonprofits, landowners, and institutions that gathered to bring together the expertise, relationships, and regulatory authority necessary to address this critical issue. Central Oregon LandWatch manages the project and coalition, in partnership with the Oregon Wildlife Foundation, the coalition's fiscal sponsor.

"This region provides critical habitat for a wide diversity of species, linking forested areas along the crest of the Cascade Range to the sagebrush grasslands of the high desert. Highway 20 is a formidable barrier to wildlife movement, and the risk of injury or mortality to wildlife is increasing as traffic volumes rise. The highway bisects critical migration and movement pathways for mule deer and elk, and makes it more difficult for all wildlife, large and small, to access the resources they need to survive," said Rachel Wheat, wildlife connectivity coordinator, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

From a motorist perspective, there are more than one million wildlife vehicle collisions in the United States with large animals like deer that cost more than $8 billion annually. Wildlife-vehicle collisions result in about 200 deaths and 26,000 injuries to drivers and passengers annually, federal officials say.

The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that the average cost of colliding with a deer is $8,190. The cost of hitting an elk is $25,319 including the vehicle repair cost, human injury/fatalities, towing/accident attendance/investigation, hunting value per animal, and carcass removal.

Since the COVID pandemic, U.S. traffic fatalities spiked. Road deaths jumped 10.5 percent in 2021 to 42,915, the highest number killed on American roads in a single year since 2005. Since then, the numbers are declining, but still exceed 40,000 each year.

The U.S. Transportation Department is awarding $110 million to fund 19 projects in 17 states to help reduce car collisions with wildlife and help animals safely cross roadways. The awards are the first under a five-year $350 million program funded by the $1 trillion 2021 infrastructure law. The federal government received applications seeking $550 million in funding.

The initiative expects to draw funding from the federal fund along with help from ODOT and other possible grants. However, Bowman says funding is not certain given the agency's persistent budget woes.

"It will be up to the legislature," she cautioned.

The project's cost while not yet finalized, with much planning and design work remaining to be done, could exceed $50 million, Bowman told us.

The first of the proposed crossings will be placed at mile markers 90, 92, 94 and 94.6; all four will be overcrossings. Suttle Lake is at milepost 87 and Black Butte Ranch is at 93.

"The danger to humans and the wildlife that inhabit this beautiful area is a growing concern for Black Butte Ranch homeowners and guests. We know that this is a complicated and challenging situation, and we appreciate actively participating in the discussions to find a tenable solution for everyone involved," said Jacob Derksen, Black Butte Ranch natural resources manager.

According to National Geographic, wildlife bridges, often called "green bridges" in the United Kingdom, are usually covered in native vegetation of various kinds. This is to make them appear like a natural part of the landscape and help invite animal passage. The crossings often work most effectively in conjunction with highway fencing, placed strategically on one or both sides of the entrance to funnel wildlife toward the corridor.

The concept was first developed in France in the 1950s. It took off in the Netherlands, where more than 600 crossings have been constructed to protect badgers, elk, and other mammals. The Dutch built the world's longest animal crossing, the Natuurbrug Zanderij Crailoo, an overpass that spans more than one half mile.