SOUTH LOOP – Chicken collisions at McCormick Place’s Lakeside Middle have decreased by greater than 95 p.c since the set up of bird-safe window movie in summer time 2024, in response to information from Discipline Museum in a information launch.
This enchancment comes after a catastrophic occasion on Oct. 5, 2023, when greater than 1,000 birds collided with the constructing’s glass façade in a single evening throughout migration.
The bird-safe movie was utilized to 120,000 sq. ft of McCormick Place’s glass over the summer time. The movie contains a dotted sample that makes the home windows seen to birds, stopping lethal collisions.
In response to the mass collision incident, the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, proprietor of McCormick Place, launched measures comparable to closing blinds nightly and turning off nonessential exterior lights. These modifications complement the constructing’s long-standing participation within the Lights Out Chicago program, which minimizes mild air pollution by shutting off inside lights when buildings are unoccupied.
The $1.2-million window movie set up was authorized within the spring 2024 after collaboration with consultants from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Discipline Museum, Chicago Chicken Collision Displays and By no means Collide. The mission aimed to guard native and migratory birds touring alongside the Mississippi Flyway, a key migration route.
The Chicago Chicken Alliance, which advocates for chicken conservation within the metropolis, praised the mission as a essential step towards defending migratory birds.
“It’s estimated that a few billion birds a 12 months die resulting from collisions, that are primarily throughout migration,” Matt Igleski, government director of Chicago Chicken Alliance, mentioned in an e mail response. “We’d encourage much more constructing homeowners in Chicago to implement this comparatively straightforward repair for home windows to assist preserve birds secure throughout migration.”
The movie was produced by Feather Pleasant, a Canadian firm that works with buildings worldwide to implement bird-safe options. Its Massive-Scale Professional answer, used for this mission, covers simply 6 to eight p.c of the glass floor, successfully breaking apart reflective or clear hazards with out affecting photo voltaic load or inside aesthetics, in response to its product web site.
In Illinois, one other profitable instance is the Zurich North America Headquarters in Schaumburg, the place the identical dotted movie was utilized to the constructing’s in depth glass surfaces.
Consultants imagine McCormick Place’s transformation is usually a mannequin for different buildings, no matter measurement or age. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams visited McCormick Place on Wednesday to acknowledge its success.
“Their efforts will encourage others throughout the nation to make glass and lighting safer for migratory birds,” she mentioned in a information launch.
Brian W. Smith, assistant regional director for migratory birds on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Midwest Area, agreed.
“The info from the Discipline Museum after this fall’s chicken migration illustrate that any constructing or residence could be made safer for birds,” Smith mentioned within the launch.
Feather Pleasant has acquired 9 extra partnership requests from buildings within the metropolis after McCormick Place’s set up, the Solar-Instances reported. The development towards bird-friendly structure continues to develop, creating safer environments for migratory birds worldwide.
“Chicago’s location alongside the lakefront makes us one of many major migratory paths for birds in spring and fall,” Igleski mentioned. “So something we are able to do to maintain birds secure is a essential step for conserving migratory birds.”
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