Following the 2010 completion of Phase II of Lebanon’s Natural Resources Inventory (NRI), and the 2012 adoption of the City’s Master Plan, the Planning Department engaged Dr. Rick Van de Poll and Dr. Alcott Smith in 2013 to complete wildlife corridor assessments of three areas of the City that were potentially subject to development that could impact their viability as wildlife crossing areas. Based on the results of the initial corridor assessments, the Planning Department commissioned Dr. Van de Poll in 2014 to conduct additional assessments of a number of identified wildlife crossing areas to determine: a) how they were being used, b) which species of concern were using them, and c) what, if anything, could be done to improve their potential for wildlife passage.
The latest study, completed and delivered to the Planning Department in December 2016, focused on fourteen prominent wildlife corridor areas around the City, in addition to summarizing the three assessments that were previously completed with Dr. Smith. The corridor areas that were analyzed were selected by Planning Department staff from the initial 65 crossing sites identified in the NRI using geographic information systems (GIS) data to filter out the most critical areas for review. The 14 areas identified were then subjected to additional GIS analysis and subsequent fieldwork.
The report maps and describes each of the 17 wildlife corridor areas, and provides recommendations for all areas relative to improving their long-term viability for wildlife passage. Recommendations generally include signage, improved overpass or underpass structures, land conservation measures, and targeted monitoring.
The results of this report are intended to be integrated into short and long-term planning that promotes ‘green infrastructure’ in Lebanon in order to enhance the quality of life for wildlife species in the city.