“Ecosystem services, such as cleaning the air, filtering and cooling water, storing and cycling nutrients, conserving and generating soils, pollinating crops and other plants, regulating climate, sequestering carbon, protecting areas against storm and flood damage, and maintaining aquifers and streams, are all provided by the existing expanses of forests, wetlands, and other natural lands. These ecologically valuable lands also provide marketable goods and ser¬vices, like forest products, fish and wildlife, and recreation. They serve as vital habitat for resident and migratory spe¬cies, maintain a vast genetic library, provide scenery, and contribute in many ways to the health and quality of life.”1

We must keep in mind that while, needing to provide for the movement of goods and services and mobility of the public, the value of the ecosystem services provided by “green infrastructure” is vital to sustainability.  The GHP Conservation and Ecosystem Protection Group was developed to assist in merging the “Green” and the “Grey” infrastructure in ways that both can coexist.  The CEP Group fosters collaboration among transportation, environmental and conservation agencies to encourage linkages between transportation planning and environmental protection initiatives.   The goal is to coordinate state Green Infrastructure and wildlife conservation planning activities with regional and metropolitan transportation planning efforts ensuring that both work together.  

Specific activities include:

Strategic (Transportation) Conservation Plans will allow the RPO/MPO to effectively design transportation projects that fit the RPO/MPO schedule and budget and that address the safety and mobility concerns of the region’s transportation system while promoting ecosystem protection, and sustain the economic vitality of the area.  These plans will be developed using a variety of conservation ecosystem approaches.   The CEP supports the application of any of these approaches or a combination of approaches depending upon the needs of the specific area and consistency with state practices or approaches.   
The approaches include:

Using an STCP for rural/urban Planning Organizations will:

Supports the following initiatives:

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REGIONAL CONSERVATION STRATEGIES (RCS)
Recently the Group has worked with the Keystone Conservation Trust (KCT) to identify ecosystem management opportunities in the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Highlands.

KCT is focused on the development of Regional Conservation Strategies (RCS) that will engage stakeholders involved in protecting large, complex landscapes. The RCS process integrates cutting-edge conservation science with innovative strategic planning, thereby producing rich and multidimensional analyses.

KCT is currently utilizing this strategy in a number of landscapes throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Florida.  The Green Highways Partnership looks forward to incorporating their experience into pilot projects.

Northern Tier Project
Location- 5 counties in NE Pennsylvania:

Transportation- Contains transportation infrastructures ranging from major corridors, Interstate 81, State Routes US 6, US 15, US 11 and US 220 to a large network of local unpaved roads.

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GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE ASSESSMENT APPROACH

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OUTCOME

The creation of “Strategic conservation Transportation Plan” for use by rural and metropolitan planning organizations.

Wildlife Crossings & Wildlife Corridors
Millions of vertebrates - birds, reptiles, mammals, and amphibians - are killed every year by vehicles traveling on America's roads. Each year, more than 200 motorists are killed and thousands more are injured in animal-vehicle collisions, according to The Wildlife Society. Moreover, roadways often cut through habitats, fragmenting animal populations and disrupting ecosystems.

GHP support the efforts currently underway to incorporate wildlife crossings and corridors into mainstream transportation infrastructure.  According to FHWA, these bridges, culverts, tunnels, and barriers redirect animals over, under, or around the highway and greatly reduce the risk of vehicular collision.  The crossings and corridors are designed to coincide with natural animal movement paths, so as to minimize habitat disruption and fragmentation.  Coordinating green infrastructure planning, conservation planning will help to direct key locations for wildlife crossings and corridors.   

For more information on wildlife crossings, see: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/wildlifecrossings/ .

Amphibians and reptiles that manage to scale the wall along US 441 in Central Florida will be topped by the lip at its top. The wall also directs animals, like bobcats to highway underpasses.(FHWA)

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