Light Pollution Abatement
Each month Dan Taylor - Light Pollution Abatement (LPA) Director will post an update on LPA related activies.
LPA Report - May 2010
Call for Assistance with Wasteful Lghting on the Provincial Road/401 Interchange Gateway Project.Your support is requested in the matter of wasteful lighting installations at the recently completed Gateway project at the Provincial Road and Highway 401 interchange.FYI, beginning late last year, I composed two letters outlining objections to DRIC managers, then later one to Sandra Pupatello's office and later still, one to my own MPP, Bruce Crozier. There has been no reply from any of these offices.On a follow up phone call to Bruce Crozier's office, a staffer said they contacted Sandra Pupatello and likewise did not receive a reply.You are urged to drive out to this location to see for yourself the lighting issue at this location. Once there you will note the street lights at each end of the project on Provincial road are sag lens prismatic fixtures. The nine or so high mast fixtures are cut off design, ie. slightly dished shaped. Cut off fixtures have significant glare and some uplight, moreover this falls short of the full cut off requirements. Proof of their poor design can be seen nightly from any direction many kilometers away.You will notice two full cut off fixtures at the western off ramp traffic light. They were the last ones installed and interestingly, AFTER I made an initial contact with the project managers regarding the improper lighting.The project design stipulated full cut fixtures. This was assured to me over a number of meetings and one presentation with managers at public reviews over the last several years. Dave Panton and Susan Sawyer-Beaulieu likewise met with officials and received assurances that our requests for environmentally friendly fixtures would be applied to project standards.There are a number of questions with serious consequences. Why were project requirements for full cutoff lighting overlooked? What will be done to correct these wasteful fixtures at this site? Lastly, and most importantly, how will this oversight be avoided in the forthcoming gateway projects?Your help is needed to reinforce our concern with officials about the lack of regard for project requirements and getting answers to these questions. Please consider writing or at least calling your MPP and letting them know of your concern about lighting. Your support will certainly gain attention in regard to this matter.You may be aware recently Donna Ronconi helped in this sort of action in the town of Amherstburg and it proved very successful.
LPA Report - April 2010
- Contacted my MPP, Bruce Crozier's Office, regarding the non FCO lighting at the Provincial Rd /401 Interchange. His staff in turn sent a message to Sandra Pupatello's Office which has not been replied to. Hmmp. At any rate, if there is no response from Bruce Crozier's Office by the weekend, there may be a need for the membership's support through a letter writing campaign to your MPP. As was the case for Amherstburg, such action led to very positive results.- Attended the Windsor Enviroexpo this weekend past. A number of promising contacts were made, one especially with Pelee Island. The island township is last remaining community in Essex County to adopt FCO practices. From my conversation with the resident on hand at their booth, there may be a cultural challenge to getting changes there.LPA Report - March 2010
- Thanks to Donna Ronconi for her steadfast effort to get the attention of Amherstburg town officials in the matter of the new street lighting. On Monday March 15, I met with the public utilities manager and two of his staff. The lighting program, which is limited to the core area of the town, is actually almost complete. Although the luminaires they selected are not full cut-off, they have minimal uplight. Glare may be an issue with this design. If anyone happens through downtown Amherstburg at night please share your impressions. In addition to street lighting I presented the Windsor lighting intensity standards. They are very interested in them are will investigate how best to apply them to their development documents.- On March 11, I attended a IDA sponsored symposium on light pollution in Chicago. There were a number of presentations with a lot of good information.- The new Cross Canada Full Cut-off survey of municipalities is almost finished and ready to view on our light pollution web page.Please notify me of any light pollution activity you undertake so that it can be included in future reports.LPA Report - February 2010
- Working is ongoing to update and re-issue the Cross Canada Full Cut-off Survey. This survey lists communities in Canada that have light pollution actions in a number of categories. When ready, a link will be posted- Still waiting on a reply from a letter to MPP Sandra Pupatello regarding the lighting at the Provincial road and 401 interchange.- One of the IDA's principle dogmas is that streetlights contribute a minimum of 30% to local sky glow. This is being challenged from lighting engineers from Toronto.One of the Toronto light pollution policy members is writing a statement on the matter. I have been supplying material in support of his effort.LPA Report - January 2010
- Donna Ronconi has successfully received the attention of an official in the Town of Amherstburg regarding a federally sponsored major re-lamping project. I hope to follow up with the town planner in the near future. Donna has also been successful in getting the City of Windsor's attention regarding the excessively bright lights at the Windsor Disposal Service depot abutting the E C Row expressway.
- Dave Panton reports via a note from Randy Groundwater that the Comber truck stop yard lights have been converted to FCO. This brings to conclusion an episode that has made many feel victimized by a developer's systematic wonton disregard for the environment. However by this success, it has been proven that entrenched light pollution controls, through the municipal site plan control process, work very well. Especially with persistent attention. Thank you Dave for your steadfastness on our behalf.- I have been working with the envirogroup opposed to the proposed Coco development near the Ojibway complex as their light pollution expert. Early in December we were advised to submit official statements to the OMB judge, outlining our particular concern with the proposed development. The document can be disclosed shortly along with Coco's lighting expert's rebuttal. Christmas week we were advised to have our presentations submitted in advance of the hearing, scheduled for mid January 2010. I assimilated material from a number of sources, including Dr Travis Longcore, recognized a the leading expert on the effect of artificial illumination on the nocturnal environment. At any rate, the process has been stalled until next year. Coco requested and received an adjournment until January 2011.- The 401/Provincial overpass construction is now complete. As part of the border infrastructure it was supposed to be illuminated with FCO fixtures. During the final phase it was apparent that the lighting was not FCO. I wrote the project manager and although did not receive a reply, the remaining lights henceforth, were FCO. Unfortunately there are only two. I have followed up with a letter to Sandra Pupatello's office and will be calling shortly.- If in Windsor and you see a new development going up with non FCO lights please take the time to call the 311 system.LPA Report - November 2009
- Access the 2009 Annual Report from LPA Director - Dan Taylor by clicking here.
The report is in Adobe Acrobat pdf format. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer, download your free copy.
LPA Report - September 2009
- Met with Lasalle Planner, Larry Silani, Building Supervisor Brian Geary and Development Engineer, Jerry Barycki. Successfully persuaded them to incorporate Windsor style lighting standards into their site plan control documents.
- Traveled to Manitoulin Island on behalf of the RASC to officially mark the society’s designation of Gordon’s Park as a Dark Sky Preserve.- Writing a light pollution impact document at the request of a preservation group for presentation at an upcoming OMB hearing on a major development adjacent to Ojibway Prairie Provincial Nature Reserve.
LPA Report - June 2009
- Correspondence with the City of Welland to encourage the use of FCO lighting.
- Communicating with the township of Pelee Island about FCO developers policy.
- Request to meet with LaSalle officials about FCO developers policy.
- Asked to present the National RASC 'Dark Sky Preserve' certificate at the Manitoulin star party on Manitoulin Island.
LPA Report - May 2009
- Presentation to the Woodstock Environmental Action Committee, Woodstock town hall.
- Ford Motor Co. development on Riverside Drive, at the site of the power plant, non conforming lighting reported to 311.
- Requested and received approval from the national LPA budget for purchase of the license (right-of-use) for the famous "during and after the blackout of '03".
LPA Report - April 2009
- Contacted Essex County administration about new installs of sag lens 'cut off' luminaires. Spoke with county engineer Mr. Fazicash and discussed a return to FCO policy.
- Comber Truck stop lighting.
- Dave Panton, Pierre Boulos and myself have tendered numerous letters and calls to an assortment Lakeshore officials and regional politicians. For my part, I have received assurances from senior staff that the offending lights will not pass inspection. The developer has been put on notice. Remedies are underway.
- Note: there is a prescribed course of events that typically play out enroute to remediation. In other words, it will take some time before the corrections will occur.
- I prepared and submitted a response for the IDA/IESNA's current draft Model Lighting Ordinance
- Point Pelee received the RASC's newly minted DSP logo via Robert Dick, chair, national LPA committee. Superintendent Marian Stranak responded with a thank you note.
LPA Report - March 2009
Letter to ELK re: CO fixtures
A number of CO (cut-off) fixtures were seen at various locations in Essex county. CO fixtures have a small direct uplight component. A letter was sent to ELK energy and I will be following up with a call this week.
Review report on the Model Lighting Ordinance (MLO)
I am preparing a report of the IDA/IESNA MLO draft for the national LPA committee. There are serious short coming in the document. http://docs.darksky.org/MLO/MLOPublicReview020909.pdf
Home Depot conceding?
On a late evening drive by I notice the Walker Road side of the Home Deport building lights were off. Perhaps someone can look into the situation with the offensive rear light.
OMB hearing moved to June
The OMB hearing on the Ojibway Development has been moved to June.
Comber Horror
On the weekend Dave Panton discovered a great new hazard for Hallam Observatory. The new Comber Truck stop has installed 22 prison yard style fixtures. These will have a significant impact on the skies at Hallam. I am in touch with Lakeshore admin. staff. Thankfully, the site has not been to final inspection nor are there any variances. The matter will be looked into by the staff. Stay tuned we may need your support with letters and call to LS politicians.
LPA Report - February 2009
Working on tasks for the IYA ‘Sky Quality Measuring Project’ see http://www.rasc.ca/lpa/sqm/ for more details on this IYA event.
Susan Sawyer Beaulieu is communicating with DRIC/MTO on the impact of high mast lighting for neighbourhoods along the border route corridor.
Dave Panton has been communicating with officials regarding lighting at the proposed new prison project.
In March I will be one of a number of people speaking on environmental impact of a major development abutting the Ojibway Nature Preserve.
