Rights-of-Way as Habitat Working Group

habitat conservation + working landscapes

A close-up image of a bee hovering near a vibrant pink flower, surrounded by green foliage, highlighting the importance of pollinators in nature.

Resources library

This online library is a clearinghouse of tools and information related to habitat on rights-of-way and other lands. From seed mix calculators to mowing guidelines and everything in between, you’ll find it here.

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Colorful wildflowers blooming along a roadside, highlighting the importance of protecting native habitats for pollinators and enhancing biodiversity.

Protecting Roadside Wildflowers

Policy and Publications

This website of the Florida Wildflower Foundation provides a model resolution that can be adopted by local governments to protect roadside wildflowers. The site includes step by step advice in working towards getting the resolution adopted. While the site is designed for the state of Florida, the resolution and advice are applicable to any state.

Informative graphic on the importance of roadside habitats for monarch butterflies, highlighting the role of milkweed and nectar plants in their lifecycle, the impact of herbicides on these habitats, and best management practices for reducing harm to monarch populations.

Monarch Butterflies, Weeds, and Herbicides

Best Management Practices

This guide by the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation highlights best management practices to reduce the impacts of herbicides on monarchs.

Alt text: Academic article titled

How Engineers and Roadside Vegetation Managers Maintain Vegetation in Iowa, USA

Case Studies and Research

This article surveys county engineers and roadside managers who manage vegetation in Iowa to assess how they maintain roadside vegetation.

Map of the United States divided into 16 regions for ecological guides, highlighting areas from Alaska to the Southwest, with corresponding volumes for each region, including California, Florida, Great Basin, and more.

Regional Guides for Pollinator Habitat Conservation Along Roadways

Best Management Practices, Planning Tools, Policy and Publications

These guides, created by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program, instruct transportation agencies in 16 U.S. regions on how to establish pollinator habitats along roadway rights-of-way, including regulatory overviews, planning considerations, decision-support tools, cost-benefit analyses, monitoring strategies, and case studies.

Image of a lush green landscape featuring power lines, with the text

Knowledge and Understanding Webinar: Traditional Ecological Knowledge – August 22, 2023

Webinars

This webinar delves into the impact of coordinated efforts with tribal partners and right-of-way managers and explores the practices of cultural tending and place-based approaches using traditional ecological knowledge.

Presenters: Nikki Hill, Grow With Trees
Calla Hagle and Shannon Crosse, Burn Paiute Tribe and Jacobs
Levi Brown, Tina Markeson and Teresa Martin, Minnesota Department of Transportation
Informative graphic on managing roadside weeds, brush, and erosion to ensure safe and healthy roadsides. Features images of roadside maintenance activities and highlights resources from the Tallgrass Prairie Center, Iowa Living Roadway Trust Fund, and AmeriCorps.

Roadside Weeds, Brush, and Erosion

Best Management Practices

This white paper from the University of Northern Iowa’s Tallgrass Prairie Center describes how counties and cities can manage roadside weeds, brush, and erosion to create safe and healthy roadsides and roads.