Highway 195 needs animal protection

At the outskirts of the city, located by the waving meadows of the lush Latah Creek and rolling pine-covered ridges, Highway 195 exits the city of Spokane and quickly enters pristine wilderness and vast farmlands.

As the line between the two map dots of Spokane and Pullman, Highwa 195 serves as less of a scenic country drive and more of a commuters’ blurry daily backdrop. Beyond being deemed dangerous by concerned locals, this highway has been identified as high risk by the Washington state Department of Transportation. In fact it has ranked as the most dangerous in the entire state of Washington in terms of number of collisions and casualties.

Sadly, those casualties extend to the local animal population as well. The stretch of highway between the Cheney-Spokane Road exit and the Meadowlark exit to Eagle Ridge has proven to be a veritable war zone for animals. Just these past three months four young moose have been killed within this mile range. Every day it is littered with the corpses of porcupine, deer, moose, marmot and raccoons. The very wildlife that serves as an attraction for so many of us to live in this rural region, suffers so greatly for our presence.

We are the stewards of this beautiful valley, in this beautiful region, in this beautiful country, in this beautiful world … at times the state of our planet can be overwhelming but I believe in the power of change. Today, I propose a big change to this small valley: an animal passageway to protect the native wildlife. Research has shown that a simple animal overpass or underpass on a highway can preserve countless animal lives in addition to protecting the drivers.

I have sighed and shrugged, I have shielded my eyes to protect my mourning heart, and I have listened to my neighbors grieve this needless slaughter. Let us raise our voices together to protect the voiceless and cultivate the seed of change!

Ellery Young

Spokane