WYOMING — Funds earned from the sale of wildlife conservation license plates in Wyoming have recently been approved for a fencing project along US191 near the Sublette Mule Deer Migration Corridor outside of Pinedale.
The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission and the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) approved the project during their September meetings, making this the first initiative to draw from the wildlife conservation plate funds. In 2018, the plates were created through House Bill 39 in the Wyoming Legislature, and sales go directly to projects focused on reducing vehicle-wildlife collisions in the state.
The just-approved project will extend the Trapper’s Point fence project by 1.4 miles, according to a news release from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD). That project, which was completed in 2012, includes two overpasses, six underpasses and 24 miles of 8-foot-high fencing. WGFD said the extension of the fence aims to lead wildlife to the Trapper’s Point overpass and discourage wildlife from entering the highway in a high-speed zone.
“We see the most wildlife collisions in this area during the winter,” said WGFD’s Pinedale Region Migration Coordinator Jill Randall.
The license plates officially launched in 2019, and more than 8,700 plates have been issued. The initial cost of a wildlife plates is $180, and $150 of that goes directly toward wildlife conservation efforts. The sale of plates, combined with other donations from Wyoming drivers, has earned $3.4 million for wildlife projects around the state.
The fence project is scheduled to be constructed next summer in partnership with WYDOT, WGFD, Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust, Pinedale Anticline Project Office, and Wyoming Governor’s Big Game License Coaltion.
“WYDOT has a very specific mission of keeping our roadways safe for people, and Game and Fish has a specific mission related to conserving wildlife,” Randall said in a statement. “The way we can meet both of our missions is to reduce wildlife collisions on the highway. We’re excited to have an opportunity to use these funds for a project that is going to have an immediate impact on saving mule deer from getting hit on the road and improving motor safety.”
