New Approaches to Ecological Surveys (2009) / Chapter Skim
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From page 11... ...
; 37 state fish and wildlife agencies (74% of all states) ; three state Natural Heritage programs; the U.S.
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These approaches highlight the change in the scale of ecological surveys from concerns limited to a specific area before potential development to the analyzing the landscape over greater time scales far in advance of a potential project. New approaches that directly address the ecosystem-level needs and that were learned about in the course of this study include those that either address cumulative impacts or tools to address the ecological effects of potential projects.
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GIS data are tremendously important to long-term planning and all other stages of the transportation planning, development, and operations process. GIS ecological survey needs and new approaches were a major part of this synthesis.
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Many new approaches to address species presence include standards for gathering data, such as: The Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies' new handbook on monitoring for • amphibians and reptiles Analyses of the genetics of populations on either side of a road, such as Arizona's stud-• ies of pronghorn isolation among roads Technologies to detect species, such as sonic tag detectors in fish • Population studies of wildlife near roads.• Some states have environmental or ecological survey manuals and guidebooks to help standardize such methods. Broad-Level Ecosystems and Landscape Survey Needs and New Approaches At the project development phase, data needed to address ecosystems and landscapes include: Data on the presence of sensitive ecosystems such as wetlands • Specific connectivity areas for terrestrial wildlife and aquatic connectivity of streams • and wetlands Methods of bringing together plans, maps, and data from local and regional scales.• Wetlands appear to be the most important ecosystems for consideration of data during project development and probably all planning phases.
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A recent publication sponsored by AASHTO, "Environmental Stewardship Practices, Policies, and Procedures for Road Construction and Maintenance," presented new approaches for environmental considerations during construction and is the most appropriate research publication for these concerns. New innovations also include tracking the locations of rare species or invasive species (particularly plants)
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Vegetation management accounts for a large part of maintenance activities. Agencies need to be able to ascertain the extent of invasive plant species, manage for them, and determine the presence of rare species and manage for them also.
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The matrix is presented in the following table. MATRIX OF STAGE OF TRANSPORTATION PLANNING, OPERATIONS, AND MAINTENANCE AND THE TYPES OF TECHNOLOGIES, METHODS AND COOPERATION THAT COULD ASSIST WITH ECOLOGICAL SURVEYS AT THAT STAGE Type of Technology/Methods/Cooperation Species/ Taxa Ecosystems, Landscapes, and Processes Long-Range Planning Cyber Tracker x x Florida Efficient Transportation Decision Making Tool for GIS Data Sharing (under GIS and Case Studies)
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x x Metro Quest (under Local and Regional Planning) x Trust for Public Lands GreenPrinting (under Local and Regional Planning)
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x x USGS National Fish Passage Program x x USFWS Service Fish Passage Support System x USFWS Fish Crossings x x Website www.wildlifeandroads.org, for Wildlife Crossings and Other Mitigation (under Landscape Connectivity) x x PDA Device for Animal–Vehicle Collisions to Help Identify Placement of Wildlife Crossings (under Landscape Connectivity)
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Case Studies Eight case studies were selected to showcase some of the varied means of obtaining, standardizing, sharing, and evaluating ecological survey data. Case studies represent different regions of the United States, different agencies and organizations involved in environmental data collection and management, and varied needs along the transportation planning, development, and operations process.
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This expanded vision of responsibility will necessitate greater interaction among DOTs and state fish and wildlife agencies and an increased need for these agencies to be more proactive about identifying areas that state, regional, and local organizations have targeted for development as well as those areas to avoid, minimize, or mitigate because they are conservation areas. The current initiatives such as the Eco-Logical approach to long-term planning, and the Western Governors' Association Wildlife Corridors Initiative are examples of how states and regions of the country and agencies are coming together to develop an interagency approach to transportation planning, development, and maintenance.
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State DOTs need data from environmental surveys. Environmental surveys in this synthesis are best described as ecological surveys; they do not consider archeological resources that are typically organized under environmental surveys.
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They address specific places where plant and wildlife species need to be surveyed to determine presence and distribution, reference terrestrial and aquatic linkages for species and process movement, and identify areas where specific ecosystems are located, such as wetlands and sensitive areas locations. Species presence can be critical if the species is of special concern; an endangered species' presence may prompt a shutdown clause, and alternatively if the species is not documented, a project may continue.
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Appendix B is a summary of new ideas about organizational changes that invoke ecological surveys that are centered on cooperation. This is a special section that documents dozens of respondents' ideas on a developing a new strategy for transportation agencies: thinking and working toward approaches beyond the road right-of-way and beyond the current regulatory framework to integrate conservation into transportation planning.
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• Proceedings from the International Conference on • Ecology and Transportation (ICOET) Sources provided by the NCHRP Topic Panel of • this synthesis, including requests for information to Natural Heritage program listserv members, the Plant Conservation listserv members, and U.S.
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State fish and wildlife agencies' response rate was 74%. It is unknown how many state Natural Heritage programs received the request to participate, so their responses are included with the state wildlife agencies.
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Broad-Level Ecosystems and Landscapes Surveys and Analyses include the following: Ecosystems Overall Effects• Ecosystems Long-Term and Cumulative Impacts• Ecosystems Expanding Temporal and Spatial Scales• Ecosystems Climate Change Causes and Effects• Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • Overview Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • GIS Analyses Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • Maps and Connectivity Plans Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • Overall Local and Regional Planning. Species Distribution Long-range planning needs for species surveys often require the availability of maps, potential distribution models, and overall planning documents to assist with general wildlife and plant distributions.
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These new approaches involve the following: Predicting wildlife and plant distribution through • maps Predicting species distribution through models• Predicting species distribution and biotic and abiotic • interactions Following Transportation Act 2005 legislation and • ensuring early planning. Predicting Wildlife and Plant Distribution through Maps Current sources of species survey data that involve maps for use in long-range planning include the following: All states have a Natural Heritage program, which maintains databases of documented locations for sensitive plant and animal species.
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From page 29... ...
Local offices of the Nature Conservancy and Natural Heritage programs are some of the best resources for learning about the methods being developed in their region. Predicting Species Distribution and Biotic and Abiotic Interactions Approaches that use multiple layers of data and present them to users to better understand ecological interactions across the landscape are presented in this section.
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From page 30... ...
ecosystem concerns, and (2) landcover and linkage mapping and analyses in the following manner: Ecosystems Overall Effects• Ecosystems Long-Term and Cumulative Impacts• Ecosystems Expanding Temporal and Spatial Scales• Ecosystems Climate Change Causes and Effects• Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • Overview Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • GIS Analyses Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • Maps and Connectivity Plans Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages • Overall Local and Regional Planning.
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From page 31... ...
Based on the results of the ecological survey, many needs for ecosystem-level impacts were identified. The needs expressed in this survey include the following: Conduct a survey for long-term, cumulative impacts • to ecosystems Conduct a survey for indirect impacts, such as ancil-• lary urbanization of road areas Conduct a survey for fragmentation effects of road on • environmentally important areas and predictive modeling to minimize potential impacts Expand the scope of environmental surveys of ecosys-• tems to include long-term and large spatial areas that could be affected Evaluate the potential effects that climate change will • have on transportation systems, and how those systems contribute to this change.
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. For more information, see Massachusetts CAPS below, under Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages Maps and Connectivity.
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reports the LIDAR technology has sometimes read treetops as ground level, skewing the results of the survey data. Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages Overview Landcover maps and wildlife linkage maps and analyses can assist greatly with long-range transportation planning.
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The Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have major data development programs and partnerships to enhance accessibility to environmental and ecological GIS data (such as threatened and endangered species, habitat mapping, land-use and landcover classifications, watersheds, wetlands, imagery) , improve data-sharing capabilities, and promote interactive and effective interagency coordination (Florida Environmental Resource Analysis Tool)
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Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages Maps and Connectivity Plans Landscape-scale ecological connectivity and plans are critical to long-range transportation plans. Long-range transportation planning efforts
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Respondents conveyed the sense that data are available for the individual animals studied, but they are not sufficient to map corridors for the majority of wildlife movement. As one respondent wrote, "GIS mapping that depicts important fish and wildlife habitat and wildlife crossings areas will assist in proactive planning to avoid impacts to valuable habitat, minimize vehicle/wildlife conflicts, and identify potential mitigation opportunities.
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From page 37... ...
a standardized methodology for determining what constitutes a blocked passage and how to prioritize these areas. The new approaches to understanding aquatic connectivity include new classification systems of waterways, web-based mapping functions to better investigate aquatic resources, and fish passage programs that are well organized and allow efficient access to large databases of prioritized passages, as well as standardized methods for collecting blocked passage data.
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From page 38... ...
Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages Overall Local and Regional Planning Conservation plans for local and regional scales can help inform the planning process to identify what the ecological resources and plans are at local and regional scales. Although the state transportation agency creates the long-range plans and brings them into a statewide long-term program, these plans are based on the direction that local Metropolitan Planning Organizations and Rural Transportation Planning organizations and communities have indicated they would like to follow in transportation and development.
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. Metro Quest software provides an approach for urban and regional planning that allows stakeholders to vote on what they would value in future scenarios.
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Survey respondents described survey needs for species at the project level more than at any other time during the transportation planning, project development, and operations process. This section of the report is where the majority of needs and new approaches are presented for species surveys in detail.
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Other new approaches and innovations have to do with improved abilities to access and search species distributional data to determine whether potential conflicts with transportation projects may exist. New approaches include the following: A number of Natural Heritage programs have begun converting their precise locational data on rare species and natural communities into mapping units that indicate not only the location of the species of concern, but also the surrounding lands and waters that are essential for the survival of the species at that location.
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From page 42... ...
,• Genetic analyses,• Mapping species distribution, and• Technologies to detect species presence and population • information. Data-gathering standards were rarely mentioned as either needs or new approaches to environmental surveys, yet they are tremendously important to the success of any program that shares data.
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The Northwest Habitat Institute developed a habitat assessment method that quantifies habitat value in a consistent format (see the discussion of NWHI, under Long-Range Planning, Species Distribution and Northwest Habitat Institute in the References)
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This subsection is organized as follows: Ecosystems and Landscapes Ecosystems -- Wetlands and Sensitive Communities• Ecosystems -- Noise and Pollution• Landscape Connectivity -- Wildlife Crossings and • Animal–Vehicle Collisions Landscape Connectivity -- Streams and Fish • Connectivity Overall Planning for Local and Regional Scales • Ecosystems -- Wetlands and Sensitive Communities At least 11 respondents expressed concerns about wetland ecosystem survey needs. These comments included the need for better mapping, better understanding of the entire ecosystem function of a stream or lake, better methods for restoring wetlands, the need to assess chemical alterations to aquatic systems from roads, and surveys for streams and wetlands that are somewhat unusual compared with the typical definition.
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From page 45... ...
Wetland delineation will be completed with the aid of field GPS data collectors. Habitat delineations will then be overlaid with species distribution and occurrence data to assist with the determination of potential impacts to species from transportation projects.
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From page 46... ...
For a description of how researchers developed guidelines, see Dooling and Popper in the References. Landscape Connectivity -- Wildlife Crossings and Animal– Vehicle Collisions The need for more research, installation, and determining the effectiveness of wildlife crossings was mentioned by 27 agencies.
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Much landscape-scale analyses of fish and aquatic systems connectivity are covered earlier in Systems Long-Range Planning, Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages sections on GIS Analyses, Maps and Connectivity Plans, and Local and Regional Planning. The specifics of new approaches are presented that explain where and how to install fish passages at a projectoriented level.
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From page 48... ...
. Overall Planning for Local and Regional Scales Generally, survey respondent needs for environmental surveys that address overall planning, including local and regional plans, were presented in the section Systems Long-Range Planning, Landcover Maps and Wildlife and Aquatic Linkages Overall Local and Regional Planning.
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From page 49... ...
These needs related to streams and their inhabitants affected by noise and pile driving, and the effects of in-water work; jurisdictional wetlands and their documentation; and water quality related to in-stream flows and pollutants. The majority of landscape-scale needs for environmental information at the construction phase requested information pertaining to proximate wetlands.
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From page 50... ...
Maintenance crews are often the personnel who need this information as they tend to structures, mow rightof-way lawns, maintain bridge and culvert integrity through annual maintenance, and keep wildlife and fish crossings open and useable for the intended species. Mitigation measures such as bat roosting sites on bridges, fish passages, and wildlife crossings need to be monitored to ascertain their effectiveness.
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From page 51... ...
Other needs were identified to learn more about wildlife use near the road and of infrastructure such as bridges, and about wildlife and fish passages. Birds, bats, and fish were the three types of taxa mentioned for survey needs related to the operations and maintenance of existing structures typically in place solely for transportation.
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From page 52... ...
. A new technology to monitor wildlife passages using DNA analysis was further developed in a pilot study conducted in Banff National Park, Alberta: "DNA Profiling to Identify Individuals Using Wildlife Crossings" (Clevenger 2007)
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Responses indicated concern about the effects of climate change on existing species distributions and terrestrial and aquatic connectivity, the flow of water, loss of habitat and its degradation, and the
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If the technology or method is applicable to more than one stage, it is presented in the other stages as well. Second, in columns two and three, the applicability of the technology or method is TABLE 1 MATRIX OF STAGE OF TRANSPORTATION PLANNING, OPERATIONS, AND MAINTENANCE AND THE TYPES OF TECHNOLOGIES, METHODS AND COOPERATION THAT COULD ASSIST WITH ECOLOGICAL SURVEYS AT THAT STAGE Type of Technology/Methods/Cooperation Species/ Taxa Ecosystems, Landscapes, and Processes Long-Range Planning Cyber Tracker x x Florida Efficient Transportation Decision Making Tool for GIS Data Sharing (under GIS and Case Studies)
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x x GPS Data on Wildlife Movement in Arizona (under Species) x x USGS National Fish Passage Program x x USFWS Service Fish Passage Support System x USFWS Fish Crossings x x Website www.wildlifeandroads.org, for Wildlife Crossings and Other Mitigation (under Landscape Connectivity)
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Tags (under Landscape Connectivity) x x Oregon Guidelines for Stream Crossings x x Maine Fish Passages Policy and Guidelines x x Massachusetts River and Stream Continuity Project x x U.S.
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From page 57... ...
to support the ETDM Process. The EST integrates environmental resource and transportation project data from multiple sources into an easy-to-use, standard format to facilitate environmental reviews and analyze the effects of proposed transportation projects on natural, physical, cultural, and community resources.
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The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission uses the IWHRS to evaluate and compare multiple alignments, and to assess direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts to important habitat systems and wildlife resources (Florida's Integrated Wildlife Habitat Ranking System)
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A central standards organization, nonetheless, can begin to refer users to standards created by national entities, such as NatureServe's Natural Heritage program. Although the bioregions of United States are quite variable, efforts to establish several GIS data standards are under way.
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. NatureServe and its network of Natural Heritage programs in every state use a standardized GIS.
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There is a national effort to standardize locational data pinpointing areas where a-v-c's occur. The researchers at the Western Transportation Institute at Montana State University have been developing a prototype PDA with a GPS unit, and corresponding software for use in collecting spatially accurate animal road roadkill.
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. Environmentally related topics include before and after analyses of projects, environmental management systems, air and noise quality, erosion control, water quality, fish passage barriers, stormwater treatment, wetland replacements, environmental compliance, NEPA documentation, and integrated vegetation management.
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for dealing with invasive species during all phases of transportation planning and maintenance and operations (see New York State DOT, Invasive Species Manual 2004)
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Technological advances in survey methods will become better developed and disseminated. A promising sign of how ecological survey data will be used proactively to help avoid, minimize, or mitigate environmental impacts is the wealth of responses from the survey respondents.
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From page 65... ...
"An Autonomous and Self-Sustained Sensing System to Monitor Water Quality Near Highways," conducted by Western Transportation Institute, Montana State University, 2007–2008 [Primary Investigator, Xianming Shi. Contact Dave Graves, NYSDOT]
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From page 66... ...
id=3858. Clevenger, A.P., "DNA Profiling to Identify Individuals using Wildlife Crossings," Western Transportation Institute, Montana State University, Bozeman, 2007.
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From page 67... ...
Environmental Protection Agency, Impacts -- A Study on Approaches to Cumulative Impacts: Hydrogeomorphic Wetland Profiling: An Approach to Landscape and Cumulative Impacts Analysis, EPA No. 620/R-05/001, 2005 [Online]
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id=29713. FNAI -- Rare Species Site: The Biodiversity Matrix Map Server [Online]
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For the purpose of this study, environmental impacts include: effects on human health, aquatic life, flora and fauna, surface-water and groundwater quality, air quality, vehicles, and physical infrastructure including bridges, pavements, railway electronic signaling systems, and power distribution lines, 2003– 2007.) "Linking Conservation and Transportation Planning Workshops," Federal Highway Administration Project Development and Environmental Review Office, NatureServe, and Defenders of Wildlife [Online]
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. New York Study: Biodiversity Information for Decision Makers: "Maps and Conservation Guides," performed by The Nature Conservancy/New York Natural Heritage Program [Primary Investigator, Dorothy Evans]
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. New York Study -- Herbicides: "New York State DOT's Alternatives to Herbicides, Integrated Vegetation Management, and Related Research Programs," conducted at State University of New York -- College of Environmental Science and Forestry [Primary Investigator, Chris Nowack, 2003–2004]
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and T Hoehn, Wildlife Conservation Tool, Habitat Conservation Scientific Services, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Tallahassee, Jan.
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Washington State Department of Transportation Fish Passage Program [Online]
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is required in situations in which the environmental consequences of land use or changes have to be identified and considered in decisions affecting the public domain. Often in transportation planning, NEPA requirements begin once a project is defined.
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Sections 6001 and 6002 relate directly to environmental considerations in transportation planning. State Transportation Improvement Plan -- STIP is a statewide transportation plan that projects what transportation projects will be selected to become active construction projects in the next 5 years.
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This research will also bring together information on recent advances in environmental survey methods such as new uses of GIS data and technologies such as using genetic markers in scat to identify presence of sensitive species. Could you please tell me about recent advances and innovations that show promise in helping transportation planning and other arenas to better consider ecological resources?
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From page 77... ...
6. Natural resource researchers need to help determine the connectivity and movement requirements of all species that may be impacted by transportation corridors and ancillary impacts.
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These concerned increasing the time and space scales when we look at potential transportation impacts, and addressing ecological phenomena beyond the typical regulatory aspects of species and wetlands, such as evaluating impacts at a landscape scale of disturbance regimes, wildlife movement, plant dispersal among ecosystems, and changes in vegetation. A Midwest DOT respondent wrote of the need to change the "vision" of state DOTs to include more of a landscape scale way of examining the road effect, especially for those at higher level positions within DOTs.
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From page 79... ...
-- Rare Species Surveys -- Pre-qualification Agreement; and (4) Streamlining the Section 7 Consultation Process -- Counties in Minnesota without Federally Listed Species or Designated Critical Habitat.
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From page 83... ...
Abbreviations used without defi nition in TRB Publications: AAAE American Association of Airport Executives AASHO American Association of State Highway Offi cials AASHTO American Association of State Highway and Transportation Offi cials ACI–NA Airports Council International–North America ACRP Airport Cooperative Research Program ADA Americans with Disabilities Act APTA American Public Transportation Association ASCE American Society of Civil Engineers ASME American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASTM American Society for Testing and Materials ATA Air Transport Association ATA American Trucking Associations CTAA Community Transportation Association of America CTBSSP Commercial Truck and Bus Safety Synthesis Program DHS Department of Homeland Security DOE Department of Energy EPA Environmental Protection Agency FAA Federal Aviation Administration FHWA Federal Highway Administration FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration FRA Federal Railroad Administration FTA Federal Transit Administration IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers ISTEA Intermodal Surface Transportation Effi ciency Act of 1991 ITE Institute of Transportation Engineers NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASAO National Association of State Aviation Offi cials NCFRP National Cooperative Freight Research Program NCHRP National Cooperative Highway Research Program NHTSA National Highway Traffi c Safety Administration NTSB National Transportation Safety Board SAE Society of Automotive Engineers SAFETY-LU Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Effi cient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (2005) TCRP Transit Cooperative Research Program TEA-21 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (1998)
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New Approaches to Ecological Surveys NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM NCHRP SYNTHESIS 400 N CH R P SYN TH ESIS 400 New Approaches to Ecological Surveys TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH BOARD 500 F ifth S treet, N .W . W ashing to n, D .C .
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