Preventing wildlife roadkill can offset mitigation investments in short-medium term.

Wildlife vehicle collisions (WVC) are a threat to wildlife and humans, killing millions of animals of numerous species, as well as causing significant damage to vehicles, drivers and passengers. Road fencing is a highly effective mitigation measure at reducing WVC, however its large-scale implementation requires a high investment. We questioned how long it would take for savings from avoided collisions to offset the investments in road fencing mitigation, focusing on vehicle damage costs. Using the information of a 3-year systematic roadkill monitoring of 1158 km in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, we estimated the real number of casualties accounting for bias in roadkill counting. We obtained information on the material costs on cars and trucks due to WVC and, considering the road traffic volume characteristics, estimated the total material costs resulting from collisions with larger animals. Cost-benefit analyses allowed estimating the time required to amortize the investment in fencing, considering its application along the full surveyed roads or only in hotspots of mortality. We recorded over 10,000 WVC, 40% of which involved animals that can cause significant material damage to vehicles, namely the endangered lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris, n = 267) and giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla, n = 608). The average material cost per accident was US$ 885 ± 1575 (mean ± SD). We show that investments are likely to pay off in 16–40 years for the mitigation of the full roads, and in 9–25 years for hotspots of mortality. Thus, road mitigation is a win-win solution for increasing traffic safety for humans and reduces road-related negative effects on biodiversity.

Data and Resources

Cite as

Ascensão F. Yogui D.R. Alves M.H. Alves A.C. Abra F. y Desbiez A.L.J. Preventing wildlife roadkill can offset mitigation investments in short-medium term. Elsevier, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108902

Clipboard Icon
Retrieved: 23 Jan 2025 16:44:48
RIS BibTeX

Metadata
Download
DCAT-AP/NTI-RISP

Basic information
Resource type Text
Date of creation 2024-12-02
Date of last revision 2025-01-23
Show changelog
Metadata identifier 64cd5666-07af-5c0c-8e83-b79e8a70bc96
Metadata language Spanish
Themes (NTI-RISP)
High-value dataset category
ISO 19115 topic category biota
Keyword URIs
Bibliographic information
Name of the dataset creator Ascensão, F., Yogui, D.R., Alves, M.H., Alves, A.C., Abra, F. y Desbiez, A.L.J.
Name of the dataset editor Elsevier
Other identifier DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108902
Identifier of the dataset creator
Email of the dataset creator
Website of the dataset creator
Provenance
Lineage statement
Metadata Standard
Version notes
Version