EcoWest News, December 9, 2025

Welcome to EcoWest News, a weekly round-up of news and resources that you can put to use in addressing environmental issues and protecting the wild in your community.

Across the West

The City of Winnipeg is considering eliminating bird-friendly window requirements for select mall sites and corridors. Every low- to mid-rise structure accounts for about five bird deaths annually; tall buildings may cause 10 bird deaths annually. [CBC]

Astronomers in Manitoba are advocating for the establishment of a second provincial dark sky preserve 100 km southeast of Winnipeg. [CBC]

A USask researcher is studying when, what, and how much precipitation Saskatchewan receives. His work is “about building resilience by helping people across sectors anticipate what’s next and make smarter decisions in the face of change.” [USask]

As Saskatoon has discovered, organics composting is a challenge for many municipalities due to cost and lack of experience in constructing the appropriate facility. [CBC]

Climate change is altering the diversity of plants growing in the understory of forests in ways that could weaken the ecosystem’s overall function. [UAlberta]

Canada’s failure to monitor earthquakes and landslides in BC’s Interior could spell trouble for the proposed northern pipeline. [The Guardian]

A survey of a large green space in North Vancouver identified 43 bee species. Five were specialist bees that only forage on a small subset of plants. One species, bombus flavidus, is thought to be at risk in BC. [Native Bee Society of BC]

Across Canada

Federal, provincial, and territorial governments are urged to adopt the proposed National Peatland Strategy to protect Canada’s most carbon-rich ecosystems. [Wildlife Conservation Society Canada]

Fossil fuel jobs have fallen below 1% of Canadian employment and are dropping rapidly due to new technologies, economic forces, resource depletion, and corporate outsourcing strategies. [The Energy Mix]

Around the World

An alliance of German NGOs has called on the European parliament and German government to tax private jets and business and first-class air tickets to fund environmental programs. [The Energy Mix]

A park in Copenhagen protects the community from flooding while increasing biodiversity and providing social and play spaces. Bioswales create the boundaries of outdoor rooms with different functions, such as natural areas, farmers’ markets, or play areas. [Dirt]

China is the world’s largest emitter, but its 2025 CO2 emissions are flat with no increase from the previous year despite strong growth in energy demand. Emissions from transportation and electricity have fallen but were offset by increased emissions from industry. [Sustainability by Numbers]

Making a Difference

Saskatchewan’s One School One Farm Shelterbelt Project “pairs teachers with ‘land partners’ so students can help bring back native plants and the bees and butterflies that depend on them.” [CBC]

Dark sky-friendly tips for holiday light decorations: useful, targeted, low level, controlled by timers or sensors, and warm coloured. [Dark Sky]

Biodiversity

Stunning photographs of snowy owls and concerns about a 30% decline in their breeding population over just three generations. [The Narwhal]

A talk by an international expert on wasp ecology demonstrates wasps are vital predators, pollinators, decomposers, and natural enemies of crop pests, playing essential roles in sustaining ecosystems and supporting human wellbeing. [1.5-hour video, YouTube]

Bird populations in the Pacific Northwest have been stable over the past 30 years, but as temperatures have increased they have become more abundant at higher elevations. [Futurity]

Photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/apmckinlay/15628013463

EcoFriendly West informs and encourages initiatives that support Western Canada’s natural environment through its online publication and the Nature Companion website/app. Like us on Facebook, follow us on BlueSky, X, and Mastodon, or subscribe by email.