Millions of birds in Canada die each year from colliding with buildings.
They fly into them, seeing the landscape reflected on the glass but not the glass itself. In Canada, migration seasons during the spring and fall are particularly fatal as birds travel through major cities like Toronto. After receiving complaints from activists for years, buildings in the Financial District have been addressing this matter.
In 2021, TD Centre, one of the most hit buildings in Toronto according to the Global Bird Collision Mapper, began installing countermeasures. This included applying a dotted vinyl film to the outside of the windows on the first few stories. At the time, this move was the largest retrofit in the country. According to The Globe and Mail, FLAP Canada’s Executive Director, Michael Mesure, said that other places that installed this vinyl film saw collisions decline by over 80 percent.
It wasn’t until 2013 that legal precedent was set making it an offence to harm or kill a migratory bird due to collision with a window. This was a result of legal advocacy group, EcoJustice, beginning a private prosecution charging Cadillac Fairview, owners of a complex of buildings in North York, with related offences. The company was ultimately acquitted as they were determined to have taken action to address the problem.
Since then, a number of products and techniques have entered the market to reduce bird collisions with buildings. The goal is the same: make the window look like a barrier. Examples include the vinyl film like the TD Centre used, having ribbon, string, or tape hanging outside the window, or installing exterior shades and screens. According to the CSA Bird-Friendly Building Design Standard, the least expensive way for a building to become bird-safe is to use bird-safe glass, like ceramic frit or etched, in the initial construction.
Infographic created by Hayley Reid-Ginis
For several years, a non-profit organization with authority on this issue, Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) Canada, has been proposing incorporation of the Bird Friendly Building Design Standard to the National Building Code. This code is still in progress. For now, building construction is regulated by each province individually. Implementing this design standard would mean that all new building windows, residential and commercial, would have to use bird-friendly materials within the province. According to a letter from the legislative research office of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to MPP Chris Glover, “efforts are underway to harmonize provincial and territorial construction codes with Canada’s National Model Codes.” The letter confirmed that Ontario could indeed qualify to change its building code for the “protection of human, animal or plant life or health.”
In a conversation with FLAP Canada’s Executive Director, Michael Mesure, he shared that there’s a need for laws that protect birds to be enforced. While discussing the recent bird-safe measures taken by buildings in the Financial District, it was supposed that without the case law involving Cadillac Fairview, progress likely wouldn’t have been seen.
Other buildings in Ontario have been retrofitted with bird-safe designs, such as The Rondeau Provincial Park visitor center in Morpeth, west of London. A letter from Chris Glover to the Minister of Infrastructure, Minister of Environment, and Minister of Natural Resources states that it’s “unclear if or how the province considers implementation of bird safe design when buildings are set to undergo scheduled maintenance and repairs, such as window replacements.”
Two large-scale projects have been criticized for the potential impact they would have to the environment, and particularly birds: the redevelopment of Ontario Place, and Highway 413. In the same letter, it’s stated that “plans for the redevelopment of Ontario Place were brought into alignment with the CSA A460 standard after public feedback correctly observed that the design proposed for the site would be catastrophic for migratory birds.” But despite the revision, experts warn that the site will likely still cause bird fatalities.
Of course, Highway 413 doesn’t pose threat of birds hitting glass windows, but a CBC article wrote that research shows the project could negatively affect more than 100 migratory bird species. These species are protected under the Migratory Birds Convention Act, a federal legislation. It could also threaten endangered and at risk species such as the Red-headed Woodpecker and the Short-eared Owl, as noted by Environmental Defence Canada.
The data exists to prove that bird-safe building measures prevent birds from human-caused mortality. The ecosystem relies on birds to pollinate, disperse seeds, and control pests. With more legal protection, the unnecessary death of birds from collisions can be limited.
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