National Academies Press: OpenBook

Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings (2008)

Chapter: Chapter 4 - Decision Guide

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Page 98
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 4 - Decision Guide." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14166.
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Page 109

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

98 The final product of this research is an interactive decision guide that provides clearly written guidelines for the selec- tion, configuration, and location of crossing types, as well as suggestions for the monitoring and evaluation of crossing ef- fectiveness, and their maintenance. The interactive decision guide can be found at the URL http://wildlifeandroads.org. The basic outline of the interactive decision guide is hierar- chical. The user can use the Navigation Box to enter the site at any step. The hyperlink for each step is located within the box of each step. The outline of the Guide is shown in Fig- ure 39. Clicking on “What should I know?” under Site Naviga- tion takes users to a page where they can learn about the wildlife issues they need to consider in a road project (Figure 40). If the user is familiar with these issues, the logical starting place is the Decision Guide. When “The Decision Guide” link is clicked under Site Navigation, the Decision Guide Overview (Figure 39) appears. When the Step 1 “Resource Evaluation” box is clicked, Figure 41 appears. When the cursor passes over each of the boxes or triangles (1.1, 1.2, and 1.3), the user will see a description of Step 1 with its three substeps: 1.1 Identify Scope of Transportation Plan/Project, 1.2 Identify Wildlife and Fisheries Issues, and 1.3 If a Mitigation Need: Identify Goals and Objectives. Also in- cluded on the page are links to other helpful websites. Similarly, Figure 42 appears when the box for step 1.1 is clicked. The user can scroll down though the step to view the rest of the information. The other steps are accessed in a similar way. For example, when the box for step 1.2 is clicked, the user will see the page as shown in Figure 43. Again, the user can scroll down to see the rest of the information. Step 2, Identify Solutions, is the centerpiece of the inter- active decision guide. Step 2 is where detailed guidance is provided to users for the selection, configuration, and loca- tion of wildlife crossings and their monitoring for effective- ness and maintenance. Six second-level steps are provided where users can learn about the types of mitigation for pass- ing wildlife safely over, under, and across transportation corridors (Step 2.1); how to place that mitigation (Step 2.2); how to determine configuration (Step 2.3); how to deter- mine maintenance needs (Step 2.4); how to begin a cost- effectiveness analysis (Step 2.5); and how to determine monitoring and the evaluation plan (Step 2.6). Each of the six second-level steps can be clicked for third-level informa- tion germane to that step. Step 2 is accessible by clicking the Step 2 “Identify Solutions” box and the page shown in Figure 44 appears. Any of the steps can be accessed for additional informa- tion. For example, if Step 2.1 is clicked, these third order steps appear, each with accessible additional information: 2.1.1 Identify Species to Benefit from Potential Mitigation 2.1.2 Identify Ecological Processes (Water Flow, Animal Movement, Other) 2.1.3 Identify Landscape and Topographic Features that May Affect Movement and Migration 2.1.4 Identify Engineering and Maintenance Concerns 2.1.5 Weigh Cost Concerns with Potential Benefits 2.1.6 Identify Appropriate General Wildlife Crossing Type 2.1.7 Other Mitigation Options 2.1.8 References Step 3, Select and Create a Plan, is a decision node where all the information from previous steps are integrated into the larger planning and decision-making process. If the planning level is controlled by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, then Step 3 corresponds to the Record of Decision or Decision Notice. Each agency will have its own procedure. The major product of Step 3 is a decision on the mit- igation appropriate for the project. When the user clicks the Step 3 diamond (a decision node), Figure 45 appears. Each substep of Step 3 is linked and provides detailed in- formation on documenting decisions in the Implementation C H A P T E R 4 Decision Guide

99 Figure 39. Interactive Decision Guide Overview. Plan, developing maintenance agreements, and identifying an implementation liaison. When the user clicks on the Step 4 “Construction” box, Figure 46 appears. Construction is the beginning of the im- plementation phase of the project and after the crossing has been built, a monitoring and evaluation phase, often neglected when road projects are built, begins. Only through monitor- ing and evaluating performance against a priori expectations of performance, e.g., successful passage of the intended species, can biologists and engineers understand what cross- ings work and what need modifications. When the user clicks on the Step 5 “Monitor & Evaluate” box, Figure 47 appears. The user can scroll down to read the rest of the information contained on the page and can click on the icons for Steps 5.1, 5.2, and 5.3 for pertinent informa- tion on Adaptive Management. The following classes of data are linked to the query func- tions (Figure 48). For example, all the pictures on the website have linked key words so that a query asking about specific species, places, or crossing types will return pictures that match the query. Hence, a picture of a wildlife crossing for un- gulates, which is along a stream and currently under con- struction in Montana, is linked with the query functions by any of the following key words: ungulate, deer, elk, moose, Montana, construction, riparian. A dynamic part of this website is the ability to search data- bases for pertinent information. The search engine is accessi- ble from the Site Navigation sidebar by clicking on “Search Engine” (Figure 49). Two query fields (state/prov, keyword) allow users to find multiple links of related articles, pictures, databases, and web- sites by place or keyword. For example, if the user searches for

100 Figure 40. What should I know?

101 Figure 41. Step 1, resource evaluation, of the Decision Guide. “Utah” and “deer,” the results shown in Figure 50 (first page shown only) are returned. A unique property of this site is the “My Saved Files” feature. This feature allows the user to transfer website addresses into a final folder of products that can be downloaded. Users can give an article or webpage a cursory glance and then save it in their final list of products to view and download later once they have finished with the website. Instructions for using the “My Saved Files” feature can be accessed by clicking on the “What should I know?” link in the Site Navigation sidebar. See Figure 40. Another benefit of the website is the ability of users to sub- mit case histories and data. This information will be reviewed by the supervisor of the website and possibly a committee of professionals who can verify the accuracy of the new material. This ability leads to a dynamic website that is continually being updated in an ever changing world. For a better comprehension of the interactive decision guide, and the site overall, the research team recommends the reader visit the website: www.wildlifeandroads.org. As an ex- ercise in using the interactive decision guide, the research team has suggested a series of steps on the site a first time user may want to follow in order to get an understanding of how this process will proceed. The “What Should I Know?” link is the recommended initial step.

102 Figure 42. Step 1.1.1 of the Decision Guide.

103 Figure 43. Step 1.2 of the Decision Guide and associated hierarchy.

104 Figure 44. Step 2, identify solutions, of the Decision Guide.

105 Figure 45. Step 3, select and create plan, of the Decision Guide.

106 Figure 46. Step 4, construction, of the Decision Guide.

107 Figure 47. Step 5, monitor and evaluate, of the Decision Guide. Figure 48. Classes of databases in the Decision Guide Query Function that are linked.

108 Figure 49. Search engine.

109 Figure 50. Example of the Decision Guide search engine results for Utah.

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TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 615: Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings explores the development of an interactive, web-based decision guide protocol for the selection, configuration, and location of wildlife crossings. The decision tool as outlined in the report is available online.

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