Ecological Corridors and Ecoducts

In some countries, such as the Netherlands, there is a government policy in place to maintain and, where possible, increase the value of the natural landscape. In the Netherlands, the central government initiated the Ecologische Hoofdstructuur (EHS), which means the Ecological Primary Structure, with the objective to create a balanced network of connected landscapes. In the EHS, the core areas of importance such as forests, water landscapes and valuable agricultural landscapes are connected to one another via Ecological Corridors. The key purpose of creating the EHS has been to prevent fragmentation of the natural landscape in the country because isolated elements of landscape would result in the reduction of the biodiversity of flora and fauna as well as in the destruction of natural values. 

The goal is to maintain the biodiversity of flora and fauna in the country.

The EHS was initiated in 1990 by the government with the goal to connect natural landscapes with a total area of 750,000 hectare. This is nearly 17.5% of the area of the country. Within urban areas, the need to connect landscape elements leads to the creation of Ecological Corridors such as the one which can be seen in the design and development of the urban quarters of Monnikenhuizen in the city of Arnhem. Where the Ecological Corridors cross lines of motorized infrastructure, Ecoducts (wild-life crossings) are used to allow animals to safely cross human-made barriers. These can be in the form of ridges and/or tunnels to provide safe passage for walking, crawling or even flying wildlife.