Draft beachfront lighting rules would require amber/red LEDs and ban uplighting to protect nesting loggerheads
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Summary
Glynn County's draft beachfront lighting ordinance would require shielded fixtures, ban upward-directed lighting, and allow only amber or red LEDs with wavelengths not less than 560 nanometers along nesting beaches; staff said the change is designed to preserve nighttime darkness for hatchlings while allowing safety lighting.
Glynn County planning staff and coastal experts described a proposed overhaul of the county's beachfront lighting rules aimed at reducing hatchling disorientation and improving nesting success for loggerhead sea turtles. The proposal updates a decades-old code and adds three technical components: limits on the total light reaching the beach, requirements on the light's wavelength, and restrictions on the directionality of fixtures.
Staff said the revised ordinance would keep the seasonal restriction in place (May through Oct. 31) and require that point sources of light be shielded so bulbs are not visible from the beach. The draft's new directionality section would prohibit any fixture that projects light upward or that directly illuminates vegetation, buildings, trees or other objects visible from the beach because reflected or bounced light can still reach nesting areas.
On wavelength, county staff told the room that only amber or red LEDs or other lamps authorized by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources that produce wavelengths "not less than 560 nanometers" would be allowed along the beachfront. The presenter said that modern LED bulbs can be tuned to these wavelengths so properties can maintain safety lighting while complying with turtle-friendly limits.
The draft also contains specific, operational provisions: private balcony lights would have to be low-mounted (no more than 24 inches above the balcony floor) and illuminate only the balcony; parking-area and roadway lighting would need shielding and turtle-friendly spectra; pool and pool-deck lights would be required to be turned off when pools are not in use unless safety/security needs require otherwise; and temporary construction-site lighting must comply with the same standards. Staff said enforcement timing and any compliance grace period will be determined after public comment.
Environmental volunteers and longtime residents in the meeting supported the changes. Judith Nichols, a St. Simons resident and sea-turtle volunteer, said she supports the beachfront lighting update and emphasized the need for a reasonable grace period so owners can retrofit fixtures.