Did Governor Pritzker Just Save The Lives Of Millions Of Birds?

Honestly, probably not but this might be a good thing to bring up just for social awareness.

Riley actually wrote about this a few weeks ago when Book Club Chicago published an article on the McCormick Place claiming the lives of hundreds of migrating birds.

BookClubChicago - The data shows birds are attracted to lit windows - which could result in deadly collisions, according to the researchers. In turn, shutting off the lights at McCormick Place and other downtown buildings on high-risk nights would save birds.

Illinois Representative Bob Morgan spearheaded a bill that would require all state owned buildings to use "bird friendly construction techniques for all new construction or renovation of Illinois state-owned buildings."

Last week Governor Pritzker signed that bill and Bob Morgan was PUMPED.

I don't know anything about Bob Morgan. I had to look up what district he was from, the 58th.

Pretty rural area just south of St. Louis.

This guy is passionate and loves to throw out the double star brackets, **....** for his big news and it works.

That's an impressive gaze from Rep. Morgan.

What's Included In The New Illinois Bird Law?

According to a press release sent to me by the Great Lakes Audubon Society,

Over 250 different species migrate through Chicago alone, about five million individual birds in all. Between 2005 and 2014, volunteer bird monitors collected over 26,000 dead birds in the Chicago Loop, including one banded black-and-white Warbler from Ontario, Canada who died from a collision on its sixth migration from Central America through Chicago, well short of its 11-year expectancy.

All state owned buildings being built or renovated from now on must:

• Incorporate bird friendly design
• 90% of the exposed facade material will be made of glass that helps stop bird collisions.
• Outside building lighting is appropriately shielded to protect wildlife.
• Director of the Bureau of Property Management to monitor bird mortality at each State building.

I'm no bird nor civics expert but this sounds pretty simple. We use some magic anti-bird glass for buildings that they want to make out of glass, you turn some lights off a couple months out of the year, and we save a couple thousand migratory birds.

I'd like to know a little more about this magic anti-bird glass company and which congressman is tangentially connected before giving this 100% approval. The press release doesn't say much about it other that it helps stop bird collisions.

You can read the press release here.

P.S. If you thought about this clip at all while reading this we can be friends.