"Eco-Logical: An Ecosystem Approach to Developing Infrastructure Projects" and Its Relation to Aquatic Habitat Restoration

“Eco-Logical: An Ecosystem Approach to Developing Infrastructure Projects” is a guidebook developed in 2006 by an interagency team led by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to foster better communication and collaboration between Federal, State, tribal and local agencies, the private sector and academia, when working on transportation, communication, utilities, and other public-needs projects that can negatively impact the environment.  By improving communication and collaboration among partners and using an integrated planning process, greater flexibility can be achieved in avoiding and reducing environmental impacts and developing better mitigation options while navigating regulatory permit procedures.

The Eco-Logical program first started as a grant program.  In 2007, FHWA awarded approximately $1.4 million in assistance to fifteen projects that used the “Eco-Logical” approach to infrastructure development. These efforts included sharing of data and provided enhanced conservation and environmental protection and restoration in terrestrial and aquatic habitats, including fish passage projects.  Eco-Logical has evolved into a broad-based program that may fund projects at the landscape-level of planning using a collaborative approach with all partners, with many projects including aquatic resource protection and enhancement as one component of the master project.