Protecting Asian Elephants from Linear Transport Infrastructure

The Asian Elephant Transport Working Group’s Introduction to the Challenges and Solutions

Across the 13 countries where endangered Asian elephants still roam, habitats and movement corridors are increasingly being fragmented by infrastructure like roads, rails, and canals. Collisions leading to both human and animal deaths are also more common. These stressors of growing human presence are being linked to a diversity of repercussions such as India documenting 186 elephants being killed by trains over a period of more than ten years and China’s herd of elephants moving 500 kilometers away from Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve during 2020-2021. Such issues are a wake-up call for a better understanding of the impacts of human development on habitat connectivity, and what measures can be taken to avoid or mitigate future conflicts.

To inform a more comprehensive understanding of the issues and growing number of solutions to address impacts, the Asian Elephant Transport Working Group (AsETWG) launched a groundbreaking publication titled “Protecting Asian Elephants from Linear Transport Infrastructure.” The result of collaboration among infrastructure ecologists and elephant biologists, contents include:

Information about the projected expansion of linear transport infrastructure (LTI) in range countries;
The research and evidence of impacts that such growth is having on Asian elephants;
A focus on guidelines, policies, laws, practices, and emerging technologies for reducing Asian-elephant transport conflicts;
Seven wildlife crossing case studies covering Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, and Malaysia; and
Recommendations for advancing efforts, policies, and research.

It is estimated that fewer than 52,000 Asian elephants remain in the wild. Currently listed as “endangered” on the IUCN Red List, Asian elephants thrive when they have the freedom to follow their traditional movement routes to access food, water, and mates. However, herds across South and Southeast Asia are declining due to habitat loss and fragmentation, which prevent them from meeting their life cycle needs. In response to dwindling elephant numbers and growing threats—including infrastructure development—the 13 range countries (see map) where Asian elephants still live met in 2017 and signed the Jakarta Declaration for Asian Elephant Conservation. The declaration includes prioritizing actions to reduce infrastructure development in “Asian elephant conservation landscapes” as well as increasing communication and collaboration among the countries, so that elephant movement is considered in planning for all development.

As a contribution to the countries’ conservation objectives, experts are collaborating through the AsETWG as a growing network of 25+ infrastructure ecologists and elephant biologists providing expertise and solutions for avoiding and mitigating the impacts of linear transport infrastructure—especially roads, rails, and canals—on Asian elephants. Formed as a joint collaboration of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group (CCSG) and the IUCN Species Survival Commission Asian Elephant Specialist Group (AsESG), AsETWG is focused on contributing to the improvement of core habitats and movement corridors that are threatened by new development and upgrading of linear infrastructure. Some contributing authors have the following to say about this new publication and its potential to set more comprehensive conservation achievements for Asian elephants in motion:

“This publication is indeed the result of cross-sectoral and cross-boundary collaboration. Conserving Asian elephants and their habitat connectivity requires endorsement from stakeholders such as road agencies. This publication will help lay foundations to support strategic planning of “wildlife friendly” linear infrastructure in Asian elephant range countries.”

— Becky Shu Chen, AsETWG Member; Technical Advisor, Zoological Society of London

“This work is beneficial for all stakeholders, including road agencies, ecological protection staff, and the public interested in wildlife. It is the start of developing more specific guidelines to help build greener linear infrastructure in Asia.”

— Dr. Yun Wang, AsETWG Member; Senior Researcher, China Academy of Transportation Sciences

“We can’t afford to wait, since new linear infrastructure development is expanding rapidly. Ideally, new transport infrastructure can avoid crossing through key elephant habitat altogether. But if that can’t happen, then we need to build elephant-sized wildlife crossings where they are needed, and we must get started as soon as possible.”

— Rob Ament, AsETWG Co-Chair; Senior Conservationist at the Center for Large Landscape Conservation

Press and additional inquiries can be addressed to the AsETWG Secretariat at connectivity@largelandscapes.org.
This publication was made possible through a unique collaboration of experts and their institutions supported by the Center for Large Landscape Conservation and funding from the New York Community Trust, Woodcock Foundation, and friends.
The publication can be cited as follows:

Ament, R., Tiwari, S.K., Butynksi, M., Chen, B.S., Dodd, N., Gangadharan, A., Jayasinghe, N., Laur, A., Oppler. G., Wong, E.P., van der Ree, R., Wang, Y. (2021). Protecting Asian Elephants from Linear Transport Infrastructure: The Asian Elephant Transport Working Group’s Introduction to the Challenges and Solutions. AsETWG (Asian Elephant Transport Working Group; IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group/IUCN SSC Asian Elephant Specialist
Group). https://doi.org/10.53847/VYWN4174

State	Year	Policy	Description
New Hampshire	2026	SB592	Enables regional, conservation, and energy resource planning for habitat strongholds and wildlife corridors
New Hampshire	2019	SB200	Requires the New Hampshire Department of Transportation to consider fish and wildlife crossings and mitigation measures in all future road and culvert projects
New Hampshire	2016	SB376	Requires the fish and game department to identify existing and needed wildlife corridors connecting wildlife habitats in the state and to make recommendations for legislative changes

State	Year	Policy	Description
Maine	2023	LD258	Appropriates $7.5 million to Department of Transportation to improve roadways with potential adaptations for wildlife
Maine	2023	LD1881	Establishes compensation fee program relating to fish and wildlife habitats and associated corridors, including compensation paid by solar energy development
Maine	2023	LD508	Requires Department of Environmental Protection to review its permitting laws concerning climate change, habitat connectivity, ecological resilience, and coastal environments

State	Year	Policy	Description
New Jersey	2025	S3618	Directs state agencies to develop a Wildlife Corridor Action Plan
New Jersey	2024	S3916/A5486	Expands eligibility for existing wildlife fencing programs by including farmers leasing farmland
New Jersey	2007	NJAC7:13	Requires the state to incorporate wildlife crossings or a natural bank for terrestrial threatened and endangered species and/or species of concern when a new bridge or culvert project would cause habitat fragmentation

State	Year	Policy	Description
New Mexico	2023	SB72	Appropriates money to new Wildlife Corridors Fund for implementation of wildlife crossing projects under New Mexico Wildlife Corridor Action Plan
New Mexico	2022	HB 2	Allocates funding for projects to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and allows the Department of Transportation and Department of Game to implement their Wildlife Corridors Action Plan
New Mexico	2019	SB 228	Requires the creation of a Wildlife Corridor Action Plan that includes comprehensive guidance to agencies for identifying, prioritizing and maintaining important areas for wildlife movement

State	Year	Policy	Description
Washington	2023	HB1216/SB5196	Requires Department of Ecology to prepare environmental impact statements for clean energy projects that consider impacts to habitat connectivity and wildlife migration corridors
Washington	2022	SB5689	Provides funding for US 97 Wildlife Crossing Improvements project
Washington	2019	SEO 1031.02	Recognizes the effect of roadways in creating barriers to wildlife movement, breeding, and migrations; the Washington State Department of Transportation will promote and support Practical Solutions and Planning and Environmental Linkages to integrate habitat connectivity and biodiversity plans; will make use of the highway prioritization map known as Habitat Connectivity Investment Priorities; and will corporate and coordinate with other agencies involved in wildlife habitat protection, specifically along highways

State	Year	Policy	Description
Vermont	2023	Act59	Vermont's 30x30 law that commits to conserving and maintaining an ecologically functional landscape that sustains biodiversity and maintains landscape connectivity
Vermont	2016	Act 171	Primarily focuses on timber harvesting regulations, but calls for a study of necessary revisions to planning statutes that protect contiguous areas of forestland from fragmentation and promote habitat connectivity between forestlands

State	Year	Policy	Description
Colorado	2026	SB141	Creates optional collision prevention fee to fund wildlife safe passage projects
Colorado	2025	HB1093	Restricts local limits on residential density unless offset elsewhere, exempts areas near wildlife crossings, and allows municipalities to seek judicial review of land use initiatives
Colorado	2023	SB 23-092	Encourages minimal impacts to wildlife migration corridors when constructing solar panel farms
Colorado	2023	SB 214	Appropriates funding to the Colorado Wildlife Safe Passages Fund for wildlife crossing projects
Colorado	2022	SB22-151	Creates a $5 million fund for measures that reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and reconnect habitat fragmented by roads
Colorado	2022	HB22-1072	Expands the scope of Habitat Partnership Program to fund efforts to conserve wildlife migration
Colorado	2021	SJR 21-021	Aims to protect and enhance habitat connectivity in the state through the establishment of a working group to develop state policies on corridors, as well as the commission of a report on state corridors and voluntary policies to support willing landowners in improving connectivity
Colorado	2019	EO 11	Directs Colorado agencies to identify policy, regulatory, and legislative opportunities to ensure the ongoing conservation of seasonal big game habitat and migration corridors
Colorado	2018	SB 18-143	States explicit goals for Division of Parks and Wildlife to invest in habitat conservation and wildlife crossings

State	Year	Policy	Description
Florida	2024	SB1638	Dedicates annual funding to land purchases, conservation easements, and trail maintenance within Florida Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2023	HB1379	Creates annual appropriation to acquire lands that complete certain linkages and are under high population stress within Florida Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2023	SB2500 sec.146	Provides funding to buy Ocala to Osceola (“O2O”) Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2021	SB976	Tasks state agencies with maintaining wildlife connectivity and designates Florida Wildlife Corridor as an existing physical, geographically defined area
Florida	2021	SB2500	Appropriates $300 million to acquire lands to conserve Florida Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2019	SB7068	Creates a "Multi-use Corridors of Regional Economic Significance Program" that includes protection of wildlife corridors as an intended benefit
Florida	2008	SB542	Amends Florida Forever Act statues to include goals of connecting linkage corridors
Florida	2001	SB1468	Amends Florida Forever Act to establish that land acquisitions should include complete landscape linkages and corridors
Florida	1999	S908	Creates Florida Forever Program, with increased protection of lands that protect threatened or endangered species and plans to create a statewide system of connected landscape linkages