STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
Chances are you have had to stop for a parade of elk crossing the highway just north of Hailey or even along Buttercup Road.
Motorists have had to slam on their brakes occasionally, and they’ve even had elk run into the sides of their vehicles. And it’s not limited to elk. One woman hit a bear near Cold Springs several years ago.
One of every five crashes on Highway 75 through the Wood River Valley involves wildlife, and the highway north of Hailey had the third highest official vehicle crash rate associated with wildlife across the state between 2018 and 2022.
With that in mind, the Wood River Land Trust and Center for Large Landscape Conservation are co-hosting a presentation titled “Pursuing Wildlife Connectivity Across our Highways” on Thursday.
The presentation will be held at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 26, at The Community Library in Ketchum. It will feature CLLC’s road ecologist Elizabeth Fairbank and data scientist Jamie Faselt talking about a regional effort to develop a Wildlife-Vehicle Conflict Long-Range mitigation plan for Blaine County.
After an introduction from WRLT Community planning Director Cece Albertson, the speakers will discuss:
***The Valley’s most dangerous wildlife-vehicle collision spots
***Strategies to keep drivers safe and animal habitats connected
***Local solutions
To see it in person, save your seat at https://thecommunitylibrary.libcal.com/event/15894947. The event also can be watched via livestream at https://vimeo.com/event/5728002, and it will be recorded to watch later on The Library Archive.
The speaker event—part of the Land Trust’s “Think Globally, Act Locally” series, will kick off a series of community engagement opportunities, including:
***Leadership Lunch n’ Learn with Road Ecologist Liz Fairbank
***Spring site visits and field evaluations with the technical advisory committee at highway hot spots
***Meeting with the Wildlife-Vehicle Conflict Subcommittee of the Blaine County Regional Transportation Committee
***A Resort Cities Coalition panel and information sharing session in Bozeman, Mont.
*** Local community workshops for public comment in the summer and fall.
“The West is changing rapidly. These changes remind us of what is most important to protect as we move into the future,” said Blaine County Commissioner Lindsay Mollineaux. “For me, it has always been a priceless gift to share our lives with the wildlife here in Blaine County. We have always been special that way, situated along ancient migration corridors where many have walked and flown for millennia. I can’t thank the Land Trust enough for taking the lead and coordinating regional stakeholders to target data and international best practices for our future planning here in Blaine County. We’re going to need every tool in the toolkit to support our wild neighbors.”
The Wildlife-Vehicle Subcommittee of the Blaine County Regional Transportation Committee project has been coordinated by the Wood River Land Trust and steered by a technical advisory committee of representatives from Blaine County, Idaho Department of Transportation, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, U.S. Forest Service, Craters of the Moon National Monument & Preserve, The Nature Conservancy, Idaho Conservation League and the Center for Large Landscape.
WAIT! THERE’S MORE!
Attendees are invited to continue their discussion at an informal “Chat and Cheers” reception featuring drinks and light bites from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Sun Valley Contemporary Gallery in Ketchum. The gallery is in The Courtyard at 360 East Avenue in Ketchum.