I live in a small town that’s basically a suburb of a small-medium sized city. We’re surrounded by a mix of farmland, suburban development and busy roads. Intertwined with that are remnants of the wooded areas that used to dominate.

We also have a fairly large number of deer in the area. They love the farm fields and patches of woodland, but as you would guess, end up spending too much time on the roadways as well. There’s a particular spot about a mile from my house where one of their favorite walking routes cuts through a patch of woods, in between a housing development and a shopping center, and then into a large farm field. The problem is that before getting to the field, they cross a very busy 3 lane road, at the crest of a hill. Drivers coming in either direction are not expecting to see deer in such a populated area and have little time to react as they crest the hill themselves.

I’ve often thought that there should be one of those deer crossing roads signs in the area. I know the statistics don’t show that those signs do much good, but it’s worth a shot and much more likely to help than doing nothing. So, I did a few minutes of research on the web and learned that in my state, you have to make a sign request with the Department of Transportation. It’s 100% online, very quick and very easy. I did it. It took less than 10 minutes.

I didn’t know if anything would come of it or not, since the website mentioned that the state would eventually send somebody out to examine the area and make a recommendation for or against a sign. But, to my surprise, a sign popped up in the right place about a month after my application. Sweet!

It’s not a major environmental victory by any stretch, but it might help the situation. More than that, it shows that making a small effort can pay off, and even if the win is a small one, it’s still something positive.

For more RebEarth articles and a variety of other stories, visit Five O’Clock Shadow, a magazine style blog by Todd Fulginiti.  Todd is also a staff writer at Wise & Shine Magazine. For Todd’s musical activities visit www.toddfulginiti.com