![]() Most of the animals involved also die-and the report only covered big game such as deer and elk. Those collisions kill around 200 people annually, injure 26,000 others, and cost the country $8 billion. As a result, drivers hit up to 2 million large animals with their vehicles each year, the Federal Highway Administration reported in 2008. Past infrastructure spending erected deadly barriers separating patches of intact habitat and cutting off ancient migratory routes that wildlife follow as the seasons change. “These are levels of funding that are really significant and unusual, so the benefits of this funding will be seen for sure.”Īmong the benefits visible to many Americans will be more places for animals to safely cross the nation’s highways, thanks to a new $350 million grant program. “The fundamental shift in this bill is to better recognize natural infrastructure and better integrate human infrastructure with nature,” says Mike Leahy, the National Wildlife Federation’s director of wildlife and hunting and fishing policy. ![]() ![]() In the midst of two interconnected crises-an extinction crisis that is pushing more and more species to the brink, and a climate crisis that is forcing them to seek out new habitats-experts say the funding could mark a turning point in the urgent effort to reconnect and restore ecosystems. The $1.2 trillion act also puts a modern twist on infrastructure spending by expanding broadband internet access, upgrading the power grid for more renewable energy, and building a national network of electric vehicle chargers.īut what excites wildlife advocates is how the bill aims to stitch back together habitat that our existing highways and other infrastructure frayed and fragmented. ![]() The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that President Joe Biden signed into law on November 15 does what you’d expect of a bill with that name: It pumps gobs of money into the nation’s crumbling roads, bridges, railways, and water pipes. ![]()
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