The Georgia Department of Transportation (Georgia DOT) and The Ray have joined forces to create monarch butterfly pollinator meadows at nine highway right-of-way locations across Georgia. The project marks Georgia DOT’s first installed acreage under the Nationwide Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA) for the Monarch Butterfly on Energy and Transportation Lands. The voluntary program encourages transportation agencies to establish, maintain and manage monarch habitat on transportation properties.
The initiative reflects a growing effort to combine transportation infrastructure with environmental conservation. Georgia DOT Commissioner Russell R. McMurry, P.E., said the new pollinator areas demonstrate how highway land can contribute to conservation while addressing the decline in monarch butterfly populations. He also highlighted The Ray’s longstanding partnership with the department in advancing habitat protection.
Roadside Management Supports Pollinators
As part of the project, Georgia DOT prepared the selected roadside areas and introduced conservation-focused mowing practices. Mowing schedules were modified to give native plants and flowering species more time to develop, creating sources of nectar and habitat for monarchs and other pollinators.
The Ray took responsibility for coordinating the meadow plantings and assessing their development. Its monitoring efforts include tracking plant growth, vegetation coverage, pollinator activity and the performance of native species under varying roadside conditions.
Applying Lessons From The Ray Highway
The project builds on years of roadside research conducted along The Ray Highway. According to Josh Weaver, Ph.D., Natural Capital Manager at The Ray, expanding the work to nine locations allows researchers to test their previous findings under a much broader range of conditions.
The sites differ in factors such as soil composition, terrain and growing conditions. As a result, the project is intended to demonstrate that roadside native vegetation can serve purposes beyond supporting wildflowers and pollinators. The partners are also examining its potential for slope stabilization, erosion reduction and long-term roadside management.
Monitoring Will Guide Future Conservation Work
Georgia DOT and The Ray plan to continue observing the nine meadow sites as the vegetation becomes established. Data collected during the project will help determine how effectively native plants can provide wildlife habitat while also supporting roadside stability and erosion control.
The findings could ultimately help identify additional opportunities to incorporate native vegetation and pollinator habitat into highway right-of-way management across Georgia.