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Resident urges council to adopt light-nuisance ordinance, cites health and wildlife concerns
Summary
At the May 6 Byram Township Council meeting, resident Andrew Schwartz presented photos and urged the council to adopt an ordinance limiting outdoor light trespass, citing sleep, privacy and wildlife impacts; the council indicated majority support for pursuing an ordinance.
Andrew Schwartz asked the Byram Township Council on May 6 to adopt a light-nuisance ordinance, showing photographs and reading a prepared statement about bright outdoor lighting from a neighbor that he said is flooding his patio and the interior of his home.
Schwartz told the council that light pollution can cause sleep disruption and other health effects and said it also harms wildlife, including bats. "Without any controls in place, every backyard in Byram can potentially soon look like the backyard in the pictures we have shared with you," he said.
Schwartz described three types of light pollution—glare, clutter and light trespass—and said the problem has reduced local bat activity, which he framed as an environmental and pest-management concern. "A little brown bat can consume up to 1,000 mosquitoes in a single hour," he said, adding that reduced bat activity can lead residents to increase chemical treatments.
Council members asked questions and discussed next steps. The meeting record states that a majority of council members expressed support for drafting an ordinance to address light nuisance. No formal ordinance text was presented or voted on at the May 6 meeting.
The council did not adopt regulations at the meeting; instead, members indicated they would pursue drafting an ordinance and follow up in a future meeting.
