Chicago Continues to Fail Migrating Birds

On Monday the Chicago Department of Planning and Development (DPD) released a draft of its 2024 Sustainable Development Policy (SDP). Bird Friendly Chicago, its partners, and its supporters asked the city of Chicago to make bird protection mandatory in this update, a measure that would be critical in preventing bird mortality. Unfortunately the DPD failed to do so, even in the face of overwhelming public support for this measure.

We are disappointed that Chicago chooses to ignore a serious threat to wildlife. As the American city that poses the greatest risk to migratory birds, Chicago should be leading efforts to provide bird protections. Instead, peer cities outpace Chicago on this issue while demonstrating these requirements can be implemented with no significant delays or expense to building projects.

Requiring bird-friendly measures for new buildings and major renovations through the SDP is a small step toward making a safer city for the millions of birds that travel through our region. These birds play a critical role in the health of the environment, and their declining numbers should impress upon the city the urgency to protect them.

We extend our deepest gratitude to all the Chicago residents who spoke up in favor of requiring bird-friendly design standards in the DPD’s Sustainable Development Policy, and we ask all concerned members of the public to send their appeal that protections for birds should be mandatory during the draft policy's 30-day comment period. Public comment can be submitted by completing this survey and by emailing SDP@cityofchicago.org.