Published on August 14, 2026 11:03 am
Last Updated on August 14, 2026 11:03 am
Brent Pease, an associate professor in the forestry program, will lead SIU’s new Roadside Ecology Center (photo by Russell Bailey)
Southern Illinois University Carbondale and the Illinois Department of Transportation are partnering on a 10-year, $40 million intergovernmental agreement that aims to mitigate and minimize the impact of transportation projects on wildlife and ecosystems in Southern Illinois. The pact is the university’s largest research partnership ever.
The funds will establish a Roadside Ecology Center. The center’s work will focus on preconstruction surveys including environmental assessments, field data collection and analysis, along with mapping and compliance reporting.
The agreement went into effect July 1. IDOT also recently entered into a $5 million, 10-year intergovernmental agreement with SIU’s Center for Archaeological Investigations to assist with initial archaeological survey work for possible road and bridge projects in the region.
