Construction Meets Conservation: Bird-Friendly Expansion at Prud’homme

For years, SaskEnergy's Prud’homme Compressor Station has been more than a hub for energy — it’s been a hidden sanctuary for nesting birds. 

“We've been managing nesting birds at the station for more than 10 years. There are several wetlands near the facility and the area provides excellent nesting habitat for migratory bird species,” says Ashley Syrgiannis, SaskEnergy's Manager of Environmental Assessment.

“So, before our Prud’homme Expansion Project began, we approached our Operations team to see if they would be interested in some habitat enhancements.”

As part of the Prud’homme Expansion Project, a lot of construction work is taking place on site.

“We wanted to make sure we weren’t going to have issues with construction taking place while birds were in the area,” says Curtis Hatch, Operations Manager. “We were able to create some new habitat for the birds in the hopes that they nest outside of the area where construction is taking place.”

The first step was to determine, along with experts, which birds could nest at the station and what types of nesting structures would be best. With that knowledge, a plan was made to get new nesting structures installed over the fall of 2024 and winter of 2025. 

“We are in an area here at Prud’homme where there are a ton of wetlands — it’s like prime real estate if you’re a bird. So we see tons of different species and it’s really interesting, but it does have an impact on our operations if they are nesting near doors, for example,” says Curtis. 

To encourage Canada Geese to nest away from the plant, bales of hay were placed near the wetlands. The hay bales are excellent nesting structures for geese. Purple Martins had also been nesting within one of the existing structures at the station. That structure was removed and a Purple Martin house was set up nearby.
 
Our Environment & Sustainability team worked with a consulting company on this project. They assisted in getting the proper approvals and ensured the nest structures were built to specifications.

From a stewardship perspective, more desirable habitat for nesting bird species is now in place at the facility. This will keep birds from nesting in areas that could impact our operations. From a business perspective, the habitat expansion project allowed SaskEnergy to meet key timelines for the large project that’s being undertaken at the facility.

“This project was a good example of two groups coming together to achieve a goal by thinking outside of the box,” says Ashley. “It makes me proud to work at a company that puts value in projects like these.”

“We want to co-exist with the local habitat — a lot of different bird species make this area their home,” adds Curtis. “I’d like to look at expanding other opportunities with habitats we can create at Prud’homme. It makes you feel like you’re not being inhibited by birds when you’re able to create space for them to exist with us.”