Chicago Ecological Services Office staff presented a talk on the Service’s Strategic Habitat Conservation Planning effort , during the 6^th annual environmental resource agency meeting hosted by the Federal Highway Administration in Springfield, Illinois. 

The meetings are held so that FHWA, Illinois Department of Transportation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Fish and Wildlife Service staff can coordinate better on on-going and future transportation projects. 

Representatives from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Illinois Department of Transportation were also present at the meeting.   It is interesting to note that one of the speakers from the Federal Highway Administration pointed out the SAFTELU, the transportation authorization bill, requires transportation planners to consider environmental issues as part of the planning effort, not merely to help weed out alternatives under consideration. 

It seems as though FHWA’s new direction of looking at environmental issues up front, and the Service’ push to look at landscape level issues may lead to better and more effective coordination between us and the transportation agencies.