Critters Slow Rail Crews; Prairie Dog Relocation Won’t Delay Overall Project, Officials Say

By DAN BOYD Journal Staff Writer

A portion of the Rail Runner construction through Santa Fe will be put on hold so one of the city’s largest prairie dog colonies can get a full winter’s rest before being moved to a new home.

State Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught announced Monday that construction of the $400 million rail line connecting Santa Fe and Albuquerque will be delayed along a half-mile stretch within Santa Fe city limits after concerns surfaced in recent weeks regarding the fate of hibernating prairie dogs.

Construction will continue as scheduled along other portions of the line, and Department of Transportation officials vowed that the decision won’t slow the project.

"It’s not going to delay the whole project," said department spokesman S.U. Mahesh, adding that the department still hopes to see the Rail Runner running in and out of Santa Fe by December 2008.

Gunnison’s prairie dogs are protected within Santa Fe city limits by an ordinance that requires builders to relocate affected animals before construction.

Environmental groups estimate that 2,000 prairie dogs live in Santa Fe, with nearly 20 percent of them making their underground homes near Zia Road and St. Francis Drive.

According to state plans, that area will be bisected by the Rail Runner route on its way into downtown Santa Fe.

At a public meeting Oct. 23, several parties urged the Transportation Department to wait until spring so hibernating animals could be safely relocated.

On Monday, that’s precisely what Faught announced that the department will do, saying construction of the Rail Runner in that area will be put off until late April.

"The Department is working with local advocates to assure the safe removal and relocation of the prairie dog colony near Zia Road," Faught said.

While the half-mile section along Zia Road waits, construction on the Rail Runner — which now runs from Bernalillo to Belen — is expected to begin at other locations in the city early next year.

Earthmoving and other work along the rail route on the I-25 median has been under way for several weeks south of Santa Fe, and DOT has placed huge stacks of parts for the Rail Runner track on a lot at Zia and St. Francis.

The Transportation Department will work with two groups in particular — Forest Guardians and People for Native Ecosystems — to find a fitting relocation site for the prairie dogs.

Also on Monday, Forest Guardians joined dozens of other groups in urging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list the Gunnison’s prairie dog under the Endangered Species Act.

But it was a different group, Eco Solutions, that was contracted by the Transportation Department in September to relocate nearly 140 prairie dogs from along the Interstate 25 median, also to make way for the Rail Runner construction. Some prairie dog defenders questioned how many of the animals had been successfully relocated, however, and called the Transportation Department’s effort a "last- minute" try to deal with the critters.

On Monday, Paula Martin, a Colorado biologist who helped with the previous relocation, sounded a more positive tone, praising the department and calling the decision to temporarily delay construction a significant one.

"It’s kind of a surprise, but it’s a pleasant surprise," Martin said. "(By doing that) you’re protecting an enormous percentage of the prairie dogs in Santa Fe."

Martin said new techniques have led to a 95 percent survival rate of Gunnison’s prairie dogs upon relocation, at least in the short term.

When asked, state officials said working around the hibernating prairie dogs shouldn’t pose any additional challenges to construction.

"We made a commitment to protect the prairie dog," Mahesh said.

If you go

The Department of Transportation will host two forums today to answer questions and hear public comment about the Rail Runner extension to Santa Fe. One forum runs from 4 to 6 p.m. and the other from 6 to 8 p.m. Both will be held at the Genoveva Chavez Community Center, 3221 Rodeo Road.

(c) 2007 Albuquerque Journal. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.