Enhancing Delaware Highways: Roadside Vegetation Establishment and Management Manual

The Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) is dedicated to conserving and enhancing regionally indigenous vegetation in the State’s transportation rights-of-way. Regionally native plants are valued for their adaptation to the region and its climate, ability to control erosion, support of biodiversity, provision of wildlife habitat and contribution to the regional sense of place. Roadside vegetation strategies strive to utilize plant succession processes to achieve self-sustaining native plant communities that are cost effective to maintain, environmentally sound, scenic and unique to the State of Delaware. DelDOT is committed to reducing pesticide use in their transportation rights-of-way. By implementing an integrated roadside vegetation management manual, DelDOT will select the management strategy that best reduces negative environmental impact in a cost effective manner. Purpose of the DelDOT Establishment and Management Manual Maintaining roadsides for safety and aesthetics is important to DelDOT, Delaware government and Delaware residents. A healthy roadside environment reduces maintenance needs and costs, preserves the road surface, provides safety for vehicles and travelers, maintains good public relations, and improves the overall driving experience. Enhancing Delaware Highways (EDH) is a direct response to a need to develop an integrated and sustainable roadside vegetation management program for the Delaware Department of Transportation. For the past 50 years or more, mowing and herbicides have been the predominant methods used to manage nationwide roadside vegetation. New environmental laws, reduced budgets, and increased public interests necessitate finding more environmentally sensitive methods, incorporating new technologies, incurring lower maintenance costs, and finding cost-effective alternatives to today’s methods of management of roadside vegetation. Sustaining native roadside vegetation requires a shift from traditional management based upon repetitive maintenance routines to progressive management based upon routines that evolve in response to changing habitat conditions. Selective removal of undesirable plants is conducted as needed. As trees grow and shade increases, the population of shrubs and perennials will evolve. Integrated Roadside Vegetation Management (IRVM) uses a decision-making process to implement best management practices (BMPs) for roadside vegetation management. IRVM principles maintain that establishing and managing roadside vegetation in the most sustainable manner relies on blending the natural processes of each site with available resources and the design objectives for that site. The first publication of EDH, The Concept and Planning Manual, was developed in part to promote integration of vegetation management in the planning, design and construction phases of highway development. This Establishment and Management Manual explains in detail the necessary steps to establish sustainable roadside vegetation, and manage that vegetation in an environmentally sound, aesthetically pleasing, and fiscally responsible manner.