Projects
InitiativesWhere Safe Passages are Needed in Summit County
Seventeen wildlife linkage areas were identified along state highways in Summit County. These linkage areas were prioritized based on wildlife and biological values, safety hazards, threats to connectivity, and the opportunity to implement mitigation and conservation measures. Site visits with stakeholders and engineers were conducted in the summer of 2017 to develop recommendations for wildlife crossing structures in high priority linkage areas.
Highest Priority Initiatives
Vail Pass Wildlife Byway
Lower Blue River
Upper Blue River
Vail Pass Wildlife Byway
INTERSTATE 70
The Vail Pass Wildlife Byway extends from Copper Mountain Resort to the top of Vail Pass and is almost entirely on National Forest Lands. This area provides important habitat for a variety of wildlife including elk, mule deer, moose and one of the few known breeding populations of Canada lynx outside of southwest Colorado. An exciting effort is underway with a diverse group of engaged stakeholders to reconnect the Vail Pass Wildlife Byway with up to three new crossing structures, including what could be Colorado’s first wildlife overpass on I-70.
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Lower Blue River
STATE HIGHWAY 9
Located along State Highway 9 between Silverthorne and Green Mountain Reservoir, this linkage provides important year-round habitat for mule, deer, elk and moose as well as carnivores such as black bears and mountain lions. This area also has been identified as a regional priority through the West Slope Wildlife Prioritization Study, a joint research effort by the Colorado Department of Transportation and Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
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Upper Blue River
STATE HIGHWAY 9
Located along State Highway 9 between Breckenridge and the Town of Blue River, this linkage provides important habitat for moose and allows wildlife such as mule deer, elk and dispersing Canada lynx to move across the valley. Wildlife movement through this linkage is at risk due to increasing residential development and high traffic volumes.
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Your Help is Needed
Whether you’re experiencing Summit County as a local or a visitor, it’s important to understand the places we go and how we impact them. With that knowledge we can take action to do our part as individuals by advocating for the organizations and initiatives that protect the natural landscapes and wildlife that draw us here in the first place.