TransCanada Corp. Donates $1M to Migratory Bird Conservation

TransCanada Corporation has committed C$1 million over the next five years as a national sponsor of the Canadian Important Bird Area Caretakers Network. The nationwide initiative will establish a volunteer network of caretakers who will watch over and protect Important Bird Areas in their communities.

There are 597 Important Bird Areas across Canada.

"Community stewardship of local bird habitat is essential for the health of the Important Bird Area system – and for the birds," said Mara Kerry, Nature Canada's director of conservation. "These natural spaces are vitally important for our breeding, migrating, staging and wintering birds, and the conservation of these sites is a cornerstone of effective bird conservation."

Ruddy turnstone, a migratory wading bird that flies from southern South America to northern North America each year (Photo by Larry Hennessy)

Nature Canada and provincial naturalist organizations met May 25-26 to formally begin the work of establishing the Important Bird Areas Caretaker Network. A public launch event is planned for the fall in Ottawa.

Volunteer caretakers, who can be individuals or nature groups, will help conserve Important Bird Areas by surveying bird populations, building nest boxes, erecting signs, removing invasive species, planting native grasses, and promoting awareness of the value of wildlife.

"TransCanada believes in building relationships in the communities in which we live and work and this philosophy is shared with the Caretaker Network Program," said Brian McConaghy, TransCanada Corporation's vice president of community, safety and environment. "Caretakers work with the community to promote Important Bird Area sites and to ensure that local conservation ideas are put into action."

TransCanada has been a supporter of Nature Canada's bird conservation efforts inside Important Bird Areas for the past six years.

"Support from partners like TransCanada means there will be eyes and ears on the ground at IBAs to increase awareness and undertake conservation action," said Kerry. "This will help ensure a brighter future for birds, and help to preserve healthy ecosystems for birds, other wildlife, and people."

Canadian migratory birds are at risk. Recent population surveys suggest that for 45 species of migratory shorebirds, at least two-thirds are in decline, according to the Canadian Wildlife Service. Many species of shorebirds migrate over vast distances - as far away as Tierra del Fuego at the southern tip of South America, but when they arrive in Canada wetland drainage, pollution or disturbance on their nesting grounds may be making their lives difficult.

"Canada has a unique responsibility with respect to shorebirds because more than half of the breeding range for many species occurs in Canada. This is especially true for 15 arctic-nesting species where 86 percent of the breeding range in the Western Hemisphere occurs in Canada," the Wildlife Service says.

An Ottawa-based charity, Nature Canada is one of more than 100 conservation organizations working together as partners with BirdLife International, based in the UK, to promote sustainable living as a means to conserve biodiversity.

TransCanada operates pipelines in Canada, the United States and Mexico. Its power portfolio includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydro and wind generation. TransCanada also conducts wholesale and retail electricity marketing and trading in Alberta, Ontario and the northeast United States.

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