Welcome to The Hill’s Sustainability newsletter, I’m Sharon Udasin — every week we follow the latest moves in the growing battle over sustainability in the U.S. and around the world.

More than twice as many deer die from vehicle collisions than from hunting every year in California, a new report has found.  

Such crashes are responsible for more than 10 percent — or about 48,442 — of annual deer deaths, as the Golden State’s deer population endures a decadeslong decline, the authors stressed. 

An avoidable crisis: Deer aren’t the only animals that remain vulnerable to human vehicular traffic.  

• Thousands of Pacific newts (a species of salamander), nearly 100 mountain lions and many thousands of other animals are killed by cars in California each year.
• This deadly data was revealed this week in “Roadkill, A Preventable Disaster,” the University of California, Davis’s 11th annual report on the subject.  

The costs of collisions: In addition to the toll that traffic accidents are taking on Golden State wildlife, these incidents are also expensive, according to the report. 

• Wildlife-vehicle collisions cost California more than $200 million every year.
• Yet that sum is slightly lower this year than in previous years — in part due to a decline in mule deer, the most often hit animal.  

Animals in decline: “Anytime you get a reduction in roadkill, people think it’s a good thing,” Fraser Shilling, director of the UC Davis Road Ecology Center, said in a statement.  

“But it’s often not,” Shilling added. “In this case, it’s because there are fewer deer and other animals to hit.”  

A perilous path: Two species of newts that resided on one bridge in Santa Clara County are dying by the thousands every winter as they attempt to cross the road, the authors noted. 

• The little creatures need to make this journey to get from their home on the forest floor to a reservoir where they reproduce.
• About 5,000 newts are killed annually on this road alone.  

These deaths may be avoidable: The researchers expressed support for a potential solution proposed by Santa Clara County — to elevate the road in sections. 

• Doing so, they argued, could prevent about 70 percent of newt traffic fatalities in the area.
• Other ideas include diverting traffic from newt hotspots or closing the road to non-residential vehicles during crossing times.  

Connectivity and coexistence: “Newts, pumas and other wildlife desperately need more crossings and wildlife-friendly development before it’s too late,” Sofia Prado-Irwin, a staff scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement. 

“Improving wildlife connectivity will lead to safe coexistence, increased climate resilience and a world where California’s wonderful biodiversity can continue to thrive,” Prado-Irwin added.