Conservation Nonprofit Aims for fundraising goal towards safe crossings for wildlife through Copper Mountain Lift Sales
DENVER–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Summit County Safe Passages (SCSP), a nonprofit organization committed to creating safe crossings for wildlife, hopes to advance its ambitious fundraising goal this week as it benefits from Copper Mountain’s Play Forever Thursdays program on Thursday, March 17.
The ski resort’s annual event offers deeply discounted lift tickets for different organizations on select Thursdays; a portion of lift ticket sales purchased for St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, will benefit SCSP. While tickets typically cost $134-269, tickets on that day are only $99. Lift tickets can be purchased via the Copper Mountain website.
SCSP will use the funds to design the I-70 East Vail Pass Wildlife Crossings project, which will contain three wildlife crossing structures and extend from Copper Mountain Resort to the top of Vail Pass. The Byway will include Colorado’s first wildlife crossing structure across I-70 and is estimated to cost approximately $21 million. The nonprofit is raising funds by elevating the awareness around the problem and the financial, social, and ecological savings the crossings will create over time.
The I-70 East Vail Pass Wildlife Crossings project is vital for local and dispersing populations of Canada lynx and mule deer, elk, moose, black bear, and mountain lion. Additionally, nearly every wildlife species in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains has been documented using the habitat adjacent to this stretch of I-70, which bisects wildlife movements to the north and south. Highway traffic counts average 23,000 per day.
“We’re hopeful that people who are looking to give back to the community, save on lift tickets and enjoy less crowded slopes will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at Copper Mountain,” said Paige Singer, one of the volunteer leaders for SCSP, and also a conservation biologist with Rocky Mountain Wild. “As our region and nation start to open back up, we know increased travel means more wildlife encounters. We’re grateful to Copper Mountain for helping us move this project forward and protect motorists and wildlife.”
Wildlife-highway conflicts have far-reaching economic, social, and ecological impacts: Colorado reports more than 4,000 wildlife-vehicle accidents annually, with 266 of them resulting in human injuries and the cost of $80 million per year in property damage, injuries, and fatalities. An estimated 3,000 wildlife-related collisions in Colorado per year are unreported.
Building wildlife crossing structures create safer roads for wildlife and people and will reduce those impacts. Structures such as overpasses and underpasses with fencing allow wildlife to get over and under roads safely to access the resources they need to live. In turn, this reduces wildlife-related collisions, ensures healthy wildlife populations, and saves taxpayer dollars.
The structures on East Vail Pass is one of several recommendations from the Summit County Safe Passages Plan, a year-long effort among agencies, local governments, non-profits, community groups, landowners, and other interested parties to provide a shared vision and plan for protecting wildlife movement corridors and reducing wildlife-related collisions on Summit County’s roadways. The Summit County Safe Passages Plan identifies 17 important areas for wildlife throughout the county.
The design of the byway is anticipated to cost $3.5 million, with construction expected to cost an additional $17.6 million.
About Summit County Safe Passages
SCSP is a voluntary organization composed of local, state, and federal agencies, land managers, county and town planners, ski areas, recreation groups, conservation organizations, and other invested community members. The organization aims to connect natural landscapes, restore iconic wildlife, reduce wildlife-related car collisions and protect our natural heritage for current and future generations. More information can be found at https://www.summitcountysafepassages.org/.
Contacts
Heather Hansen
Humanity Communications Collective
Heather@humanitycom.com
410-991-4444
