2024 CONFERENCE: Schedule

The following schedule details are from the 2024 Northeastern Transportation & Wildlife Conference. 
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JUMP TO: 

• Schedule at-a-Glance
• Keynote Speaker
• Sunday Botany Walk 
• Tuesday Field Trip
• Session Details

 

Sunday, September 8, 2024
12:00pm - 6:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Registration Open
12:00pm - 6:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Exhibitor Set-up
12:00pm - 6:00pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Poster Set-up
2:00pm - 4:30pm Depart from Hotel Lobby	Botany Walk (sign-up during registration)
6:00pm - 7:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Welcome Cocktail Hour with Exhibitors
Evening	Dinner On Own
Monday, September 9, 2024
7:00am - 5:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Registration Open
7:30am - 8:30am Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Breakfast
7:30am - 3:30pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Exhibits Open
7:30am - 3:30pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Posters Open
8:30am - 10:15am Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Welcome & Keynote Remarks Beth Pratt, The Wildlife Federation
10:15am - 10:30am Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30am - 11:30am	Concurrent Sessions Marriott Salon A Infrastructure Enhancements: Prioritization and Mitigation (read the abstracts) 10:30am - 10:50am Use of Wildlife-Vehicle Collision Data to Identify Locations for Wildlife Corridors and Crossing Structures in Nova Scotia, Canada 10:50am - 11:10am Establishing Thresholds for Triggering Wildlife Passage Infrastructure Improvements under Highway Safety Improvement Program and Safety Investigation Procedures in NYS 11:10am - 11:30am Strategies for Invasive Species Management and Wildlife Habitat Enhancement in an Off-Site Mitigation Area   Marriott Salon B Strategies and Approaches for Terrestrial Wildlife Passage (read the abstracts) 10:30am - 10:50am Ecosystem-based, Core-independent Regional Connectivity to Inform Conservation Networks at Multiple Scales 10:50am - 11:10am Evaluating Transportation Infrastructure Opportunities Across the Northeast 11:10am - 11:30am What’s the Future for the NAACC   Marriott Salon C Connectivity Planning with Partnerships and Implementation at Various Scales (Regional to Local) (read the abstracts) 10:30am - 10:50am State of CHANJ Gathering 10:50am - 11:10am Understanding Vermont Conservation Design: From the Landscape Scale to Wildlife Road Crossings 11:10am - 11:30am Going Big, Small and In-Between: Highlights from the First-Ever Northeastern North America Landscape Connectivity Summit
11:30am - 1:00pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Lunch & 2024 NETWC Achievement Award Presentation
1:00pm - 2:20pm	Concurrent Sessions Marriott Salon A Panel (read the abstract) 1:00pm - 2:20pm Empower, Enable, Connect: Creating a Framework to Support Community-Led Solution for Improving Wildlife Connectivity   Marriott Salon B Panel (read the abstract) 1:00pm - 2:20pm Building Roads to Recovery for Vulnerable Bat Populations   Marriott Salon C Safety, Flooding, and Habitat Mitigation (read the abstracts) 1:00pm - 1:20pm Wetland Mitigation and Anadromous Fish Passage for Reconfiguration of I-95 in East Lyme, Connecticut 1:20pm - 1:40pm Tidal Wetland Mitigation for Replacement of the Metro-North Railroad Bridge over Norwalk River 1:40pm - 2:00pm Mitigating Environmental Impacts from the Abandoned I-95 Highway Embankment across Rumney Marsh 2:00pm - 2:20pm Training Diverse Groups in Techniques to Permanently Resolve Roadside Beaver Problems: Challenges and Rewards
2:20pm - 2:30pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Coffee Break with Exhibitors
2:30pm - 4:00pm	Concurrent Sessions Marriott Salon A Panel (read the abstract) 2:30pm - 4:00pm Pollinators Along New Jersey Highways   Marriott Salon B Panel (read the abstract) 2:30pm - 4:00pm IIJA Lessons Learned, Featuring Successful WCPP Applicants   Marriott Salon C Connectivity Planning with Partnerships and Implementation at Various Scales (Regional to Local) – Aquatic (read the abstracts) 2:30pm - 2:50pm When Diadromous Fish and Flooding Collide: Navigating Permitting Requirements and Fisheries Resource Concerns Through Collaboration on a Culvert Rehabilitation Project 2:50pm - 3:10pm Berkshire Clean, Cold and Connected 3:10pm - 3:30pm Where the River Meets the Road: Federal Agency Collaboration in Support of Aquatic Connectivity 3:30pm - 3:50pm Aquatic Organism Passage Program at MaineDOT
4:00pm - 5:15pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Poster Reception (read the abstracts)
6:00pm - 8:00pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Dinner
Tuesday, September 10, 2024
7:30am - 12:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Registration Open
7:30am - 8:30am Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Breakfast
7:30am - 12:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Exhibits Open
7:30am - 12:00pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Posters Open
8:30am - 9:00am Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Field Trip Morning Check-in
9:00am - 10:20am	Concurrent Sessions Marriott Salon A State & Federal Wildlife Planning and Guidance (read the abstracts) 9:00am - 9:20am FHWA Statewide Transportation and Wildlife Action Plan Guidance 9:20am - 9:40am Massachusetts’ State Wildlife Transportation Action Plan (SWTAP) Progress Report 9:40am - 10:00am FHWA Wildlife Crossing Best Practices 10:00am - 10:20am Waterbury IM CULV(109) Wildlife Crossing Structure - Vermont's Landscape Level Connectivity Project Funded by IIJA WCPP   Marriott Salon B Taxa-specific Mitigation (read the abstracts) 9:00am - 9:20am Data-based Design – Building Diamondback Terrapin Barriers and Nesting Habitat Into Road Construction 9:20am - 9:40am Did the Terrapin Cross the Road? A Preliminary Investigation of Land Use Impacts on the Population Structure of Diamond Back Terrapins in Connecticut 9:40am - 10:00am (CANCELLED) Understanding Bat Hibernation: Impact and Implications for Mitigation and Long-term Management 10:00am - 10:20am Beyond Poop Patrols: How NABat is Supporting Collaborative Assessment and Monitoring of Transportation Infrastructure   Marriott Salon C Case Studies in Stream Hydrology (read the abstracts) 9:00am - 9:20am Crossing a Different Stream: Restoring Fish Passage at an Off-Site Location Through a Cooperative Mitigation Agreement 9:20am - 9:40am Ten Years of Stream Continuity and Culvert Replacement Efforts: Funding and Permitting Pathways, Outcomes, and Future Steps for Projects in MA 9:40am - 10:00am TPC River Highlands Emergency Repairs 10:00am - 10:20am Identifying Locations for Stormwater Retrofitting to Eliminate Discharges to Stormwater Impaired Waterways
10:20am - 10:40am Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:40am - 12:00pm	Concurrent Sessions Marriott Salon A Panel (read the abstract) 10:40am - 12:00pm Northeast Habitats and Highways Training   Marriott Salon B Connectivity Planning with Partnerships and Implementation at Various Scales (Regional to Local) – Terrestrial (read the abstracts) 10:40am - 11:00am Partnering to Power the Western New York Wildway 11:00am - 11:20am Bowman Divide Wildlife Crossing Project: A Public-Private Partnership 11:20am - 11:40am Wood Turtles to Moose: A Corridor Approach to Connectivity Along a State Highway in Central VT 11:40am - 12:00pm Interagency Coordination for a Wildlife Crossing in Eliot, Maine   Marriott Salon C Integrating Wildlife Conservation in State & Local Planning (read the abstracts) 10:40am - 11:00am Developing a Caltrans-approved Wildlife Fencing Attachment for Guardrail Systems to Reduce Road Mortality and Provide Habitat Connectivity for Reptiles, Amphibians and Small Mammals 11:00am - 11:20am Integrating Fish and Wildlife Considerations into Virginia DOT Decisions and Processes 11:20am - 11:40am A Streamlined and State-specific Approach to Bat Consultation on Transportation Projects in Georgia 11:40am - 12:00pm Managing, Mimicking, and Recruiting Beavers: Case Studies in Wildlife Management and Ecological Restoration to Protect Municipal Roads
12:00pm - 12:30pm Depart from North Conference Hotel Entrance	Board Buses
12:30pm - 6:00pm Offsite	Field Trip & Lunch Pre-registration is required. A Grab and Go Lunch will be served after our first stop at the Groton-New London Airport, which will be after 1:00pm. Please plan accordingly. We will also provide snacks throughout the field trip.
Evening	Dinner On Own
Wednesday, September 11, 2024
8:00am - 12:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Registration Open
8:00am - 9:00am Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Breakfast
8:00am - 11:30am Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Exhibits Open
8:00am - 12:30pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Posters Open
9:00am - 10:20am	Concurrent Sessions Marriott Salon A Planning and Implementation of Pollinator Habitat Within Rights of Way (read the abstracts) 9:00am - 9:20am It's the (Bumble) Bees Knees: A New Conservation Agreement for At-Risk Bumble Bees 9:20am - 9:40am Managing Connecticut's Roadsides for Pollinators 9:40am - 10:00am Nationwide Survey of DOT Enrollment in the Monarch Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances 10:00am - 10:20am Two Bridge Replacements over Endangered Spawning and Atlantic Salmon Migration Corridors in Maine   Marriott Salon B Evaluating Success of Passage, Connectivity, and Roadside Habitat Management (read the abstracts) 9:00am - 9:20am Evaluating Success 10 Years Later: U.S. Route 7 Wildlife Passage Tunnel, Brookfield, CT 9:20am - 9:40am Evaluation of Wildlife Crossing Structures and Fencing Designs to Improve Effectiveness for Herptiles and Mammals 9:40am - 10:00am Collaboration on Municipal Bridge Replacements for Improved Connectivity 10:00am - 10:20am Effectiveness of Nest Protection Measures on the Hatchling Success of Species at Risk Turtles in Ontario   Marriott Salon C Lightning Talks (read the abstracts) 9:00am - 9:20am (CANCELLED) Incorporating Natural Resource Priorities into Transportation Planning: A Massachusetts Update Using Flow Devices to Protect Culverts from Beaver Damming Roadkill Data Collection in New Jersey 9:20am - 9:40am Teambuilding with State Partners Establishing a Relationship Between In-situ Turbidity (NTU) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS) at Construction Sites for the Protection of Endangered Atlantic Salmon Lessons Learned for Tide Gate Replacement for Sybil Creek in Branford, Connecticut 9:40am - 10:00am Cross-Agency Cooperation for the Protection of State-Listed Species (CANCELLED) GIS Wildlife Vehicle Collision and Safety Analysis for MA Northeastern Connectivity Success Stories: Regional Wildlife Crossing Case Studies 10:00am - 10:20am Peregrine Falcon Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Release Mapping Wildlife Corridors Across the Algonquin to Adirondacks (A2A) Region Connecticut Department of Transportation Wetland Mitigation Mapping & Assessment
10:20am - 10:30am Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30am - 12:00pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	State of the States – What Collaboration and NETWC Looks Like in the Future!
11:30am - 1:00pm Marriott Ballroom Foyer	Exhibitors Breakdown
12:00pm - 12:30pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Closing Remarks
12:30pm - 1:00pm Marriott Ballroom (Salons D-F)	Poster Breakdown Posters should be removed after 12:30pm. Any posters remaining after 1:00pm will be recycled.

 

Keynote Speaker 
​​Beth Pratt, ​National Wildlife Federation

Photo: Beth Pratt; Credit: NWF

​A lifelong advocate for wildlife, Beth Pratt has worked in environmental leadership roles for over thirty years, and in two of the country’s largest national parks: Yosemite  and Yellowstone. As the California Regional Executive Director for the National Wildlife  Federation, Pratt leads the #SaveLACougars campaign to build the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, which broke ground on Earth Day in 2022.  The largest wildlife crossing of its kind in the world, it will help save a population of mountain lions from extinction. Her innovative conservation work has been featured by The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, BBC World  Service, CNN,  CBS This Morning, the Los Angeles Times, Men’s Journal, The  Guardian, NPR, AP News, and more.

Her books include When Mountain Lions are Neighbors, published by Heyday in 2024, and I Heart Wildlife: A Guided Activity Journal for Connecting With the Wild World, by Di Angelo Publications in 2020. Her new book, Yosemite Wildlife: The Wonder of Animal Life in California’s Sierra Nevada, will be published by the Yosemite Conservancy in 2025. Beth has also given a TEDx talk about coexisting  with wildlife called, “How a Lonely Cougar in Los Angeles Inspired the  World,” is featured in the documentary, “The Cat that Changed  America,” on CNN’s Heroes in Conservation series, and the new reboot of Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom.

Beth obtained a BS/BA from the University of Massachusetts, an MBA from Regis University, earned the LEED AP credential, and trained with Vice President Al Gore as part of his Climate Reality Leadership Corps. In 2007, she traveled to Japan as part of a month-long Rotary International Professional Exchange to study business and national park operations. Beth also served as a founding board member and the board chair for the nonprofit Outdoor Afro for eight years. The Western Section of the Wildlife Society named her “Conservationist of the Year” in 2023, and in 2024, she received the Alan Rabinowitz Conservation award from the Explorers Club. 

Beth spends much of her time in Los Angeles, but makes her home outside of  Yosemite, “my north star,” with her six dogs, two cats, and the mountain lions, bears,  foxes, frogs, and other wildlife that frequent her backyard. More information at www.bethpratt.com or www.101wildlifecrossing.org.

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Sunday Botany Walk
​2:00pm - 4:30pm, Sunday, 9/8

Note: The Botany Walk will not take place if it rains. Please make sure to dress for inclement weather and field conditions, and bring proper clothing and shoes, bug spray, sunscreen, water and binoculars (if necessary).

​An informal nature walk will take place Sunday afternoon for those arriving to Mystic earlier in the day.  We will meet in the hotel lobby at 2:00pm and carpool to nearby Bluff Point State Park.  Bluff Point is a mix of coastal woodlands, beach and dune grasslands, coastal bluffs, tidal wetlands and mud flats.  The park was designated a Coastal Reserve by the State legislature in 1975 and more recently has been included in the Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve as part of the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS), a NOAA partnership.  Early September on the shoreline brings avian migration, monarch migration, seaside goldenrod in full bloom and the first hints of fall in changing leaves.  Join us for a walk as we share our knowledge and love of birding, botanizing, and wave watching.  The Botany Walk is rain or shine. Bring binocs if you have them, water and sturdy shoes to explore this 800-acre peninsula.  The loop path is approximately 3.5 mi., generally level and gravel, but there are cut-offs or backtracking to provide a shorter walk for those who may enjoy something shorter.  Bluff Point State Park is located approximately 2 miles from the Mystic Marriot Hotel, at 55 Depot Road, Groton, CT 06340.

 

Tuesday Field Trip
​12:30pm - 6:00pm, Tuesday, 9/10
Pre-registration is required.

Note: The Field Trip will take place rain or shine. Please make sure to dress for inclement weather and field conditions, and bring proper clothing and shoes, bug spray, sunscreen, water and binoculars (if necessary). If you have one, please bring your safety vest. CTDOT will also have a number on hand to share for the day.

Please plan to meet the buses at the hotel’s North Entrance. Bus boarding is from 12:00pm-12:30pm and our departure is at 12:30pm.

A Grab and Go Lunch will be served after our first stop at the Groton-New London Airport, which will be after 1:00pm. Please plan accordingly. We will also provide snacks throughout the field trip.

The 2024 NETWC Field Trip circuit will take in stops at coastal and inland sites. Projects presented include different mitigation strategies, unique approaches, partnerships and a little bit of history in the Connecticut River Valley. The stops will focus on different modes of transportation and representatives will be stationed at each location to discuss site constraints, mitigation goals, interesting design details and facilitate discussions among the groups. The Field trips is rain or shine. Please dress appropriately. Each bus will stop at the following locations:

Groton New London Airport – Groton New London Airport (GNL) is Connecticut’s oldest state airport, established in 1929. Many state general aviation airports (GA) and Bradley International Airport used to fall under the umbrella of Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) until the Connecticut Airport Authority (CAA) was established in 2011. One of the last projects CTDOT was involved in before the takeover by CAA was the design and construction of an Engineered Material Arresting System (EMAS) on runway 5/23. The construction of the EMAS would impact both existing tidal wetlands and would require construction of a 2.5-acre tidal wetland creation site consisting of high/low marsh, open water, and mudflat areas. In addition, adjacent to the compensatory mitigation site 0.25 acres of Phragmites was eradicated to restore an existing Spartina high marsh. The EMAS would also impact a population of state listed yellow thistle (Cirsium horridulum). We will discuss the challenges and opportunities of the tidal wetland mitigation construction and discuss the long-term monitoring of the thistle population.  

Rocky Neck State Park – Coastal marshes have faced numerous threats since colonial times.  Development, draining, ditching, and bisection by roadways leading to tidal restriction have all led to adverse effects to tidal wetland communities. Combine historic impacts with sea level change and some of our tidal wetlands are actually drowning, unable to keep up the pace of peat development, sometimes due to reduced vegetative vigor from tidal restrictions. Rocky Neck State Park is a location where the marshes of Brides Brook have been experiencing drowning for some time and has been a location for efforts by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CTDEEP) to use thin layer deposition (TLD) as a means to combat the drowning. State Project 0104-0175 includes the replacement of a 4-culvert bridge crossing carrying Route 156 over the tidally influenced Four Mile River between Old Lyme and East Lyme – just to the west of Rocky Neck State Park. The bridge replacement will impact tidal and inland wetlands. As mitigation for the impacts, through coordination with CTDEEP regulatory and habitat enhancement staff, the CTDOT is embarking on its first TLD design which will go into construction in the winter 2025. We will observe areas of drowned marsh, discuss the challenges of the design of the TLD, steps taken to try to ensure success, necessary consultations to gain approval of the TLD as mitigation, as well as coordination between CTDOT, CTDEEP, and the Design Consultant. We will also discuss the status of other TLD efforts taken within and planned for the Bridges Brook marsh system.  

Chester Hadlyme Ferry – This stop will include a chance for participants to take a ride on one the county’s oldest continually operating river ferry system. The Chester-Hadlyme ferry began operation in 1769 (the oldest is the Rocky Hill/Glastonbury ferry up-river which began in 1655). Participants will get to look for eagles and other wildlife, take in the sites and sounds of the lower Connecticut River, and even see the unique historic landmark “Gillette Castle” perched above on the east bank of the river – a castle constructed by William Gillette an actor famous for his portrayal of “Sherlock Holmes”.  This year, the ferry vessel “The Selden” marks its 75th anniversary of continual operation taking commuters, day trippers, and river buffs across the river between Chester and Hadlyme.  

East Haddam Swing Bridge – This stop will be at one of the oldest and longest remaining swing span bridges in the country. The Haddam Swing Bridge, originally constructed by the American Bridge Company in 1913 is has been the main and only crossing of the Connecticut River between Glastonbury (just south of Hartford) and I-95 at Old Saybrook/Old Lyme. We will share an interesting public interest story related to a pair of osprey who decided to nest above the operators house of the swing bridge several years ago, how the story went viral championed by some local enthusiasts and ended with CTDOT bridge maintenance division constructing a permanent nesting platform cantilevered off the bridge which maintained both the safety of the public below and ensured successful nesting of one gregarious pair of beloved osprey. The bridge is also currently undergoing a major rehabilitation project, being constructed by the original builders, American Bridge. We will discuss some of the challenges and innovative construction techniques used for the replacement of the submarine cable which powers the bridge. We will also be able to see the Goodspeed Opera House across the river, a performance venue in operation since 1877.

Haddam Meadows State Park – Haddam Meadows State Park is a popular location along the Connecticut River for recreation and boating. What most people don’t know is that Haddam Meadows also includes a unique harvest and rearing operation for the development of northern pike fry which support the State sport fishery. The Haddam northern pike spawning marsh system has been actively managed for northern pike production since 1975. The marsh encompasses approximately 30 acres, with a dike separating an 18-acre “Upper Marsh” from a 12-acre “Lower Marsh”. A weir trap attracts adult pike in the spring of the year to follow a series of channels into the marshes to spawn. Following spawning the adults are released and the fry are left in the marshes to develop before being captured and released across the state. State Project 0060-0158 included the sliplining of an existing culvert which carries Pole Bridge Brook under Route 9 in the Town of Haddam. In its existing condition, the culvert presents a significant passage barrier to fish within the watercourse – with the proposed sliplining that condition would only become worse. The fish community of Pole Bridge Brook was determined to be significant enough that the project was flagged for triggering off-site mitigation, as there was no manner to provide fish passage at the existing culvert. An MOA was developed between CTDOT and CTDEEP Fisheries Division which would provide funding to the CTDEEP Wildlife Habitat and Mosquito Management (WHAMM) unit to conduct vegetation clearing and maintenance clearing of the channels within Haddam Meadows which are used in the production of pike. The marsh had last been dredged in 1999 and natural vegetation growth, along with rapid sedimentation deposited following tropical storm Irene, had rendered the channels and marshes nonfunctional. We will visit one of the areas of the clearing, discuss the pike rearing operation in more detail, and discuss the cooperative efforts between the agencies to allow for this unique out-of-kind off-site mitigation to be a success.       

 

State of the States – What Collaboration and NETWC Looks Like in the Future! 
​​10:30am - 12:00pm, Wednesday, 9/11

Join the discussion! The Northeast Transportation and Wildlife Conference (NETWC) is an opportunity for individuals to learn and network with others from across the region. But more than that, it is a conduit linking a community of practice in the northeast.
An important question for members of the conference community is what collaboration will look like moving forward, both in terms of the conference itself as well as collaboration on other projects. Throughout this year’s conference we’d like to be discussing ideas for moving collaboration forward in the region.

• In the opening session, we’ll announce representatives for each jurisdiction to serve as hubs for the discussion throughout the conference on what coordination could look like moving forward as well as stories of specific challenges and accomplishments in that state or province. 
• The last session will be our State of the States when these representatives will talk about what they heard regarding the challenges and successes in this work. The group will then venture into an open discussion focusing on NETWC-specific topics including:
  • What increased collaboration might look like and how to formalize and finance shared work throughout the region.
  • Plans to help pay for hosting the conference to better meet our goals for learning, collaboration, and maintaining a community of practice.
  • Formation of a NETWC library: Panelists and others are encouraged to submit must-read policies, memoranda and designs of important wildlife-related documents from across the region.

Don’t miss this important State of the States discussion to help inform and formalize our collaboration. This is your chance to let us know how best to move forward!