#83 - Introducing the Wildlife Corridors Act w/ Christian Hunt & Kelly Cox

In this episode, I speak with Defenders of Wildlife’s Kelly Cox and Christian Hunt about the Wildlife Corridors Act and why it’s needed to counter habitat fragmentation and improve wildlife movement across landscapes that don’t match jurisdictional boundaries. They explain the bill’s goal of creating a national wildlife corridors system focused primarily on federal lands, requiring agencies to coordinate through a corridor committee, use mapping and science to prioritize corridors, and adopt implementing regulations within a couple years of enactment. The act defines connectivity around movements that support genetic exchange, range shifting/expansion, seasonal movement, and recolonization after disturbances, with urgency heightened by climate-driven range shifts.Beyer, Buchanan, Lofgren, and Fitzpatrick Introduce Bipartisan Legislation To Support Wildlife Migration and Protect Biodiversitywww.defenders.org02:59 Meet Kelly and Christian03:39 Defenders Parks Program06:45 Refuges Rulemaking and Predators10:38 Why Corridors Matter14:48 Defining Connectivity and Roads17:53 Climate and Private Lands21:14 State Models and Crossings Funding28:04 Science and Political Hurdles31:16 Mapping Agencies and Sideboards36:36 Economics ESA and Future Vision43:49 Public Lands Reflections Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe