PewTrusts.org  by Matt Skroch and Nic Callero   February 27, 2020 

In Nevada, as in much of the American West, roads and other development  have cut through or encroached on migration routes that wildlife has  used for centuries. That has led to an increase in costly—and often  deadly—animal-vehicle collisions, and a recognition of the need for  solutions, such as overpasses and underpasses for wildlife to use to  cross roads.

Now, a poll finds  that 93 percent of registered voters in Nevada, from across the  political and socioeconomic spectrums, believe that it is important to  adopt policies to protect wildlife migration routes in their state.

The survey, conducted by the research firm FM3 for The Pew Charitable  Trusts and released Feb. 27, found that Nevadans overwhelmingly support  solutions that safeguard migration routes for species such as mule  deer, pronghorn antelope, and elk by protecting large blocks of habitat  on public land and building wildlife overpasses and underpasses where  collisions with vehicles commonly occur. This widespread support comes  from both urban and rural areas.

Improved data from GPS-enabled wildlife collars is revolutionizing how Western states  approach the issue of protecting migrating animals while reducing  wildlife-vehicle collisions. A study of the first crossings built in  Nevada in 2010 found that more than 37,000 animals used them in the  first four years. The state now has 20 such crossings in place, with a  major project involving two large wildlife overpasses over Interstate 80  at Pequop Pass completed in 2018. These relatively new conservation  efforts enjoy prodigious support from Nevadans, and the poll results  suggest that voters want agencies, from the Nevada Department of  Wildlife and Department of Transportation to the federal Bureau of Land  Management and U.S. Forest Service, to identify and conserve wildlife  migration routes across the state.

For example, the poll found that 90 percent of Nevadans support  special habitat designations to ensure that large blocks of existing  high-quality habitat on public land are managed for the long-term  protection of migration corridors. Ninety percent also support a  proposal that federal land managers maintain open corridors so that  wildlife can move unimpeded on public lands. And 92 percent of poll  respondents support the construction of additional underpasses and  overpasses for wildlife, while 84 percent see a need for increasing  public funding for the construction of wildlife crossing structures on  major highways that intersect with known migration routes. 

According to a Nevada Department of Transportation study,  more than 500 vehicle-animal collisions occur on the state’s roads each  year, at a cost of over $19 million. Those expenses include accident  victims’ medical bills, lost wages and household productivity, emergency  response to crashes, and traffic congestion resulting from collisions.  More than 5,000 wild animals are hit and killed by vehicles in the state  annually. 

Voters also say it is very important to prohibit certain development  activities, such as oil and gas drilling, in the Ruby Mountains in  northeastern Nevada to safeguard migrating mule deer herds. The Rubies  are recognized around the world as a premier hunting, fishing, and  outdoor recreation destination and support the largest herd of migrating  mule deer in the state. When asked to prioritize between allowing oil  and gas drilling in the Ruby Mountains and ensuring that wildlife have  unimpeded migration routes throughout the range, 77 percent of voters  say protecting migration routes is more important. 

Nevada is home to robust populations of migrating wildlife, though,  as in many places across the West, habitat loss and fragmentation  threaten the long-term health and viability of those species. With new  science and information about where and how animals move across  landscapes combined with the overwhelming public support for a wide  variety of conservation efforts, state and federal leaders are well  positioned to enact policy and plan transportation infrastructure  projects that protect wildlife habitat and people alike.  

Matt Skroch is a manager and Nic Callero is a principal associate  with The Pew Charitable Trusts’ U.S. public lands and rivers  conservation team.