In 2008, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife - Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Programentered into an interagency agreement to streamline Massachusetts Endangered Species Act (MESA) review through detailed early project coordination, reducing impacts though the evaluation of preliminary project designs and investigating creative cost-effective mitigation opportunities. The success of the partnership has led to the initiation of Linking Landscapes, a proactive wildlife and transportation collaborative between NHESP and MassDOT.
In conjunction with the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, the agencies launched a long-term and multifaceted volunteer based monitoring program and planning collaboration to be implemented throughout the state. Utilizing expertise from various state departments along with collaboration with the public, LLMW's objectives are to: 1) reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and improve public safety; 2) enhance, protect, and restore habitats impacted by roads; 3) control invasive species; 4) incorporate conservation priorities into transportation planning; and, 5) implement wildlife transportation and research.
