For many Alaskans, winter driving means keeping a wary eye out for moose as they make their way onto highways where the walking is easier than wading through the deep powder of remote locations. However, the Alaska Moose Federation is working to make winter driving safer for humans and ungulates.
"We think there is a better alternative in winter than people just white knuckling their steering wheels and hoping for the best," said Gary Olson, chairman of the federation, in regard to the group's Statewide Moose Assistance Response Team (SMART) program.
After many years of planning, the implementation of the program began about six weeks ago in the Mat-Su Borough on Miles 100 to 132 of the Parks Highway around Trapper Creek, and it's coming to the Kenai Peninsula for a week of clearing work at the end of February.
"We'll push down the (Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) right of way along the highway from Soldotna to Homer, and we're talking with (Homer Electric Association) to see if we can put trail under the power lines," Olson said.
The adoption of moose mitigation on Alaska's highways by Alaska DOT was only recently approved by Federal Highway Administration in September of 2007, when a task force made up of several state and federal agencies decided to include it into the integrated State Highway Safety Plan, Olson said. This plan has a goal to cut all highway fatalities in Alaska by one-third over the next decade.
"Since July 2007, six Alaska residents have been killed in moose collisions. We want to make sure these fatalities, and those that came before them, weren't in vane," he said.
State grants have provided for much of the basic materials and equipment such as a tank-like Tucker Snow-cats, global positioning systems and chain saws needed for this effort. The SMART program also has access to, and frequently utilizes, a Prinoth snow groomer. A Highway Safety Office grant also has been used to offset some of the costs for fuel.
"We currently have a $10,000 fuel budget which is about 40 percent exhausted from our Trapper Creek efforts so we will be requesting donations from the Kenai Peninsula community to our nonprofit to help continue this effort through the remaining portion of the winter," Olson said.
He said the goal of the program is to increase safety on Alaska's highways, and the federation already has seen some encouraging signs that moose are using the newly created snow trails around Trapper Creek, and are thus holding back away from the highway corridor. He said he hoped the same would be true for the Kenai Peninsula after the right-of-way mitigation work is complete.
"This will give them alternatives to the highway. The moose can parallel the road, walk down the compacted and groomed trail, and go back in the woods. And the Snow-cat runs on the snow, just like a cross-country ski trail groomer, so it doesn't damage the habitat or ground cover under the snow," he said.
Olson said this is only the first step he would like to see taken in regard to moose mitigation on the peninsula. He said in the future he would like to work with land managers to put in more snow trails away from the highway and conduct habitat enhancement projects in these areas.
"We'd like to work with the Kenai Peninsula Borough, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, the Ninilchik Tribal Council and other groups to give moose alternatives to the highway where they can be on groomed trails, with browse to hold them there," he said.
Olson said once these alternative paths are created for moose, they can be maintained as needed.
"Once there in, it's nothing to maintaining them after a snowfall in order to get ahead of problems. The GPS tells us where to turn left and right," he said.
For more information on the Alaska Moose Federation and their mitigation efforts, visit their Web site at www.growmoremoose.org.
Joseph Robertia can be reached at joseph.robertia@peninsulaclarion.com.
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