Data from: Aging infrastructure creates opportunities for cost-efficient restoration of aquatic ecosystem connectivity

A hallmark of industrialization is the construction of dams for water management and roads for transportation, leading to fragmentation of aquatic ecosystems. Many nations are striving to address both maintenance backlogs and mitigation of environmental impacts as their infrastructure ages. Here, we test whether accounting for road repair needs could offer opportunities to boost conservation efficiency by piggybacking connectivity restoration projects on infrastructure maintenance. Using optimization models to align fish passage restoration sites with likely road repair priorities, we find potential increases in conservation return-on-investment ranging from 17% to 25%. Importantly, these gains occur without compromising infrastructure or conservation priorities; simply communicating openly about objectives and candidate sites enables greater accomplishment at current funding levels. Society embraces both reliable roads and thriving fisheries, so overcoming this coordination challenge should be feasible. Given deferred maintenance crises for many types of infrastructure, there could be widespread opportunities to enhance the cost-effectiveness of conservation investments by coordinating with infrastructure renewal efforts.

工业化的标志性特征之一，是为水资源管理修建水坝、为交通运输铺设道路，由此造成了水生生态系统的破碎化。随着基础设施逐渐老化，诸多国家正致力于同时解决运维欠账与缓解环境影响两大问题。本研究旨在验证：将连通性修复项目依托基础设施运维工作同步推进，能否为提升生态保护效率创造契机。通过优化模型将鱼类洄游通道修复点位与道路修复优先级进行匹配，本研究发现，生态保护投资回报率有望提升17%至25%。值得注意的是，此类收益不会损害基础设施或生态保护的核心目标；仅需公开沟通项目目标与候选修复点位，即可在现有资金规模下实现更优的保护成果。社会既期望道路可靠通行，也期盼渔业资源蓬勃发展，因此克服这一协同挑战具备现实可行性。鉴于多类基础设施均面临欠修危机，通过与基础设施更新工作协同推进，生态保护投资的成本效益有望得到广泛提升。