[Mnbird] Study Clear as Glass, Opinion, StarTribune

[J. Brophy]

http://www.startribune.com/study-is-clear-as-glass-u-s-bank-stadium-death-trap-must-be-fixed/564823242/

And text placed below if no access:
Study is clear as glass: U.S. Bank Stadium death trap must be fixed
U.S. Bank Stadium has the third-highest fatality estimate in downtown 
Minneapolis. And it could have been prevented.
By Steve Greenfield , Wendy Haan and Jerry Bahls NOVEMBER 12, 2019 — 
5:45PM

Years in the making, the three-year study of bird fatalities at the 
glass palace that is U.S. Bank Stadium becomes public.

Seven years ago, instead of building a new football stadium that is 
safe for birds, the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority came up with 
a series of excuses not to do so.

At that time, the cost for bird-safe glass for the entire stadium 
would have added only 0.1% to the $1 billion cost of the stadium (half 
paid by taxpayers). Early design discussions had included bird-safe 
glass, consistent with the wishes of the community. But then MSFA 
changed its mind.

Despite intense public pressure, including a letter from the 
Department of Natural Resources, a resolution from the Minneapolis 
City Council, a petition with tens of thousands of signatures 
(including many football fans) and protests from bird conservation 
groups, the MSFA refused to listen.

Instead of building a bird-safe stadium, the MSFA and Vikings paid 
almost a third of the $1 million cost of bird-safe glass to fund a 
study of bird mortality.

Now that study is out and shows a significant number of migrating 
birds are killed by the stadium glass every year, just as the Audubon 
Chapter of Minneapolis and other groups predicted and found in their 
own study released in 2017. The stadium's highly reflective glass in 
the Mississippi Flyway, a major migration corridor used by millions of 
birds twice a year, virtually guaranteed that the stadium would rank 
among the top bird-killing buildings in the city, as the new study 
confirms.

The study found that U.S. Bank Stadium had the third-highest fatality 
estimate of 21 downtown buildings surveyed. At least 111 bird deaths 
occurred annually at the stadium. Estimated fatality rates at the 
stadium and the other three top buildings exceeded all other buildings 
in the study, and also exceed death rates at most U.S. high-rise 
buildings (based on a previous study of 11 cities). The study's 
conclusions "stress the need to prioritize mitigation strategies 
related to reducing window collisions (e.g., window films and markers) 
versus those reducing urban vegetation."

Much has changed since MSFA officials refused to build a bird-safe 
stadium. The news for birds has become even more grim. Earlier this 
year, a study by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology named the Twin Cities 
one of the worst urban areas in the country for migrating birds. Last 
month, a study published in the journal Science found that wild bird 
populations in the continental U.S. and Canada have declined by 3 
billion birds (almost 30%) since 1970.

And a new report from National Audubon Society estimates that 
two-thirds of North American birds face extinction because of climate 
change. At the same time, awareness of the threat to birds posed by 
glass has grown and solutions have been developed to make glass less 
deadly, including film developed by 3M.

Some people wonder why we should care about an estimated 111 birds 
killed at the stadium every year, but the study acknowledges that the 
actual number is likely higher. And taking these birds from the 
breeding population has exponential effects, greatly contributing to 
staggering bird declines already documented.

Minimizing the importance of any bird deaths in the Mississippi Flyway 
also misses the point that these deaths are entirely preventable at a 
time when we must protect birds to protect our environment.

Besides window collisions and climate change, birds face many other 
threats, including habitat loss, roaming cats and plummeting insect 
populations, birds' primary food source. These growing dangers and the 
alarming decline in bird populations make immediate protection of 
migratory birds imperative, particularly in the Mississippi Flyway.

When Minnesota's bird-safe building requirements first took effect, 
U.S. Bank Stadium became the last building funded with state bond 
money that was not required to use bird-safe glass. The intent of this 
wise legislation is "to limit the risk of built environments to birds, 
with special attention to the highest-risk conditions."

MSFA's own study now confirms that U.S. Bank Stadium is one of the 
highest-risk buildings in Minneapolis. It's time for current MSFA 
officials to undo the bad decision made by their predecessors and fix 
the glass.

Steve Greenfield is president of Friends of Roberts Bird Sanctuary. 
Wendy Haan is co-founder of Minnesota Citizens for the Protection of 
Migratory Birds. Jerry Bahls is past president and current board 
member of Audubon Chapter of Minneapolis.