THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, May 31, 1995 TAG: 9505310513
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: MOUNT VERNON LENGTH: Short : 35 lines
The Army is building a $1 million tunnel to help deer, foxes and beavers safely cross a six-lane parkway and reach a wildlife reserve.
The tunnel will have a natural bottom to encourage the animals to use it to avoid crossing a $12 million extension of the Fairfax County Parkway through Fort Belvoir.
Maury S. Cralle, deputy to the post commander for development, said the tunnel will be 12 feet tall, 20 feet wide and 184 feet long.
``I'm not talking about a pipeline,'' Cralle told an audience of bemused civic leaders last week. ``This is a big sucker.''
Of Fort Belvoir's 8,700 acres, roughly 3,400 are termed environmentally sensitive. The Army has created a corridor linking wetlands to the Accotink Wildlife Reserve.
Lt. Col. James H. Hayes Jr. said there are 44 species of animals in the area that could use the tunnel.
``The most prominent are the deer, but if you look around there are foxes, groundhogs, squirrels, rabbits, skunks and beavers.''
Army officials said they will have to wait and see whether the tunnel works as planned.
``They'll probably still use the road,'' said one contractor. ``But once they go through it the first time - that's it, they'll know it.'' by CNB