Jersey City Ward E Councilman James Solomon, a mayoral candidate, is touting advancing bird-safe building standards to the planning board after collaborating with a local advocacy group.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“As a city, we’ve made serious commitments to sustainability and environmental protection, and this measure is part of that. Research shows that window collisions are a major threat to migratory birds, and making buildings more visible to them has prevented countless crashes in cities across the country, including Newark—without significantly increasing building costs,” he said in a statement.
“When JC Birds brought this issue to our attention, we were happy to collaborate with them on creating Jersey City’s first set of bird-friendly building regulations, and we thank them for their advocacy. We also thank the Jersey City Planning staff for their hard work, as this is a critical step in living up to our city’s commitment to protecting our natural environment.”
The set of zoning rules to go before the planning board this fall would require new construction to include elements designed to make the buildings visible to migratory birds.
These standards are based on existing rules in Newark, New York City, and other major metropolitan areas.
“Over a billion birds are killed by building collisions each year in the United States, many of them species whose numbers are already in steep decline. But this is a problem with solutions,” explained Jersey City Birds Founder Lorraine Freeney.
“By implementing bird-friendly design standards in new construction, we can help birds fly safely through our city. We’re grateful to Council member Solomon and to Jersey City’s planning board for taking the initiative on this important issue. We also thank the many volunteers who are working with Jersey City Birds to protect birds and make our city better for wildlife.”