The Ohio River Bridges East End Crossing team, operated by VINCI Highways and BBGI Global Infrastructure, is proud to announce a new collaboration with Creasey Mahan Nature Preserve, a 68-hectare protected area located approximately 8 kms from the bridge.
The partnership brings together our team’s commitment to environmental progress and Creasey Mahan’s expertise in conservation. Through this collaboration, Ohio River Bridge teams will volunteer regularly at the Preserve to support its conservation projects, while Creasey Mahan’s ecologists and botanists will provide guidance on implementing VINCI Highways’ Wild Meadows program along the bridge.
What are wild meadows?
The Wild Meadows program uses vegetated spaces along highways and bridges to create habitats for native plants and pollinators. By planting native species and allowing these areas to thrive with minimal mowing, the initiative promotes biodiversity and sustainable landscaping. The Wild Meadows program has been successfully deployed by VINCI Highways on its European highways in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, is now ready to make its debut in the United States.
The deployment of Wild Meadows along the Ohio River Bridge will focus on transforming approximately 7 acres into thriving habitats for native plants and pollinators.
These wild meadows will be distributed along the 12 Km (8 mile) stretch of the US 265 in areas where traditional mowing is difficult or dangerous and well away from any areas that would cause a risk to road users, the intention is to return the land to represent the native grasslands of Indiana and Kentucky with plant species lost to the area during construction encouraging the development of native fauna by providing pollinating flora for the native pollinators to distribute, this move has been encouraged by the Client Team in Indiana to complement the protected areas of wetland already established on the project.
The areas will be planted with a variety of native species and the areas will not be subject to chemical pesticides as it is anticipated the plant selection will discourage weed growth, the plant variety is likely to vary over the first few years until the optimum mixture is identified. The areas will be monitored and managed on a regular basis with the view to expand these areas in the future when they prove to be successful.
First actions already underway
In November, our team kicked off the partnership by volunteering at Creasey Mahan Nature Preserve. Over the course of a single day, eight team members planted 300 native trees, replacing invasive species and helping restore natural habitats. This effort serves as a foundation for the Wild Meadows project, with seeding efforts along the bridge set to begin in April.
Stay tuned for updates on this project as we continue to work together for a greener future!
