Wildlife migration corridors can still bridge partisan divides, as demonstrated in a new House bill jointly introduced by a conservative Western Republican and a liberal East Coast Democrat.
Democratic Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia and Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke of Montana on Tuesday introduced legislation to reauthorize and make permanent the Department of Transportation’s Wildlife Crossings Program. The bill would authorize funding through 2031 for the pilot program established under the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
“Wildlife crossings save lives and are good for healthy herds,” Zinke said in a statement, adding that “this bill locks in the progress we started, keeps the funding flowing to the states and tribes that need it most, and ensures Montana families don’t have to risk their lives or lose the wildlife we all cherish driving to work or school.”
Zinke likewise advocated for wildlife crossings and migration corridors during his service as Interior Department secretary during the first Trump administration. The work aims to reduce the number of wildlife-vehicle collisions in the United States, currently estimated at more than 1 million every year.
