Banff National Park of Canada
Park Management
Table of Contents | Introduction | Current Twinning | Highway Fencing & Wildlife Crossings
Highway Fencing and Wildlife Crossings
Wildlife and Transportation Monitoring and Research in the Rocky Mountain Parks:
An International Public-Private Partnership
The Wildlife and Transportation Monitoring and Research in the Rocky Mountain Parks project is a public-private partnership established by Parks Canada, the Miistakis Institute for the Rockies, the Western Transportation Institute at Montana State University, the Woodcock Foundation, and the Wilburforce Foundation to evaluate basic transportation management questions regarding the performance of wildlife crossing structures and fencing.
Miistakis Institute – The Miistakis Institute for the Rockies was founded in 1995 to build bridges between people, their perceptions and their information about the “Crown of the Continent” landscape that stretches from Montana, British Columbia and Alberta. Miistakis is a non-profit corporation affiliated with the University of Calgary that undertakes and supports pure and applied research respecting the ecosystems of the Rocky Mountains and surrounding regions.
Western Transportation Institute – Founded in 1994 by the Montana and California Departments of Transportation in cooperation with Montana State University-Bozeman, the Western Transportation Institute (WTI) has grown from a small, university research office into a nationally recognized center of excellence in rural transportation research and education. WTI has been involved as the primary researcher in wildlife mitigation measures for the research and monitoring of wildlife as part of the twinning of the Trans-Canada Highway in Banff National Park since 1996.
Wilburforce Foundation – The Wilburforce Foundation protects wildlife habitat in Western North America by actively supporting organizations and leaders advancing conservation solutions. The Wilburforce Foundation has been involved in wildlife monitoring and mitigation research along the Trans-Canada Highway since 2005. Wilburforce supports efforts to shed light on the movement patterns and habitat needs of focal species in the west and efforts to investigate means for mitigating the negative consequences that can arise when wildlife and human habitats overlap.
Woodcock Foundation – The Woodcock Foundation is a progressive family foundation established to link family creativity and resources with community development needs. The Woodcock Foundation has been involved in wildlife monitoring and mitigation research along the Trans-Canada Highway since 2005 and is a key partner in raising the international awareness around wildlife movement and protection while promoting feasible, buildable context-sensitive and compelling design solutions for safe, efficient, cost-effective, and ecologically responsive wildlife crossings.
Parks Canada – Parks Canada manages the protection, preservation and administration of 42 National Parks, 167 National Historic Sites and 3 Marine Conservation Areas across Canada. Parks Canada has a mandate to manage this legacy by maintaining or improving ecological integrity in national parks while creating experiences and education opportunities that connect Canadians to these treasured places. Parks Canada is an experienced world-leader in managing and restoring ecosystems to natural states using the best science available in conjunction with universities, other agencies and a variety of institutions.
Parks Canada has worked to twin the Trans-Canada Highway in phases through Banff National Park since 1980. This project is designed to improve the safety of people and wildlife while also improving wildlife connectivity by using leading edge wildlife overpasses, underpasses and exclusionary fencing. Parks Canada has supported research and monitoring of wildlife along the Trans-Canada Highway since highway wildlife mitigation began in 1996.
Click to go back