EnviroScience, Inc. recently won a $5,000,000 contract through the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) for the proposed Western Management Unit (WMU) Bat Mitigation project. Through an agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), ODOT has committed to acquiring land suitable for bat roosting habitat/bat diurnal colony habitat for federally listed bat species in Ohio. This collaborative effort will fund the identification, acquisition, restoration, and protection of qualified bat habitat in the WMU to offset statewide impacts related to ODOT’s transportation program.
The project team, led by Project Manager Greg Zimmerman, will provide full delivery conservation and reforestation, if necessary, of a minimum of 525 acres of high-quality maternity colony bat habitat. EnviroScience’s Conservation Specialist, Neal Hess, who is also a licensed Ohio real estate broker, will assist Mr. Zimmerman as Project Liaison, drawing on his land conservation expertise. To date, Mr. Hess has raised and managed over $60,000,000 in conservation financing for natural resources protection and restoration projects throughout Ohio.
By teaming with EMH&T, The Conservation Fund, and the Appalachia Ohio Alliance, as well as a host of other subconsultants, our project team will maximize on-the-ground bat habitat protection and restoration utilizing our experienced bat biologists and land acquisition experts. The Conservation Fund and Appalachia Ohio Alliance have already identified over 1,000 acres of high-quality, available bat habitat in Ohio that will be targeted for this project. Our team has extensive experience managing and delivering large-scale mitigation, and threatened and endangered species projects such as this on tight timelines.