Opinion: Saving People and Wildlife the Utah Way

Every year across our nation hundreds of people die, and tens of thousands are injured in vehicle-wildlife collisions — and the carnage doesn’t end there. The annual death toll for wildlife runs in the millions, not to mention the roughly $10 billion in property damage. It’s a huge problem in most states.

Thanks to the efforts of the Utah Department of Transportation, along with its partners and federal grants, the Beehive State is one of a handful of states aggressively working to reduce vehicle-wildlife collisions with strategically placed wildlife crossings. Utah installed the first wildlife bridge in the nation, and it now has 60 wildlife crossings, which come in the form of specially designed bridges, tunnels, underpasses and fencing.

For some folks, it might seem strange to expect animals to use an overpass or tunnel, but they do. A video posted by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources shows a diverse array of wildlife using the Parleys Summit wildlife crossing. Moose, deer, bears, bobcats, coyotes and even porcupines can be seen safely crossing I-80 while vehicle traffic passes underneath.

Read the rest of the op-ed at Deseret News.