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Lights Out Connecticut presenter urges Sharon to limit nighttime lighting, offers 'good neighbor' model
Summary
At its April 15 meeting the Sharon Conservation Commission heard from Craig Repasz of Lights Out Connecticut, who outlined ecological and health harms from artificial night lighting, recommended amber downshielded fixtures and pointed the Commission to model ordinances used by other Connecticut towns.
Craig Repasz of Lights Out Connecticut told the Sharon Conservation Commission on April 15 that reducing unnecessary nighttime lighting can benefit human health and local wildlife.
Repasz reviewed scientific studies linking artificial light at night to disruptions in human circadian rhythms and to harms for insects and migrating birds, citing long-term data showing large declines in U.S. bird populations since 1970. He said dark-sky advocates have worked with the Illuminating Engineering Society and the International Dark-Sky Association to develop practical lighting principles.
"Don't have light shining beyond your property line," Repasz told commissioners, describing Hamden's ordinance as an example of a localized, neighborly approach to outdoor lighting. He recommended amber-colored, downshielded fixtures and urged the Commission to control back-lighting, up-lighting and glare.
The presentation included regulatory context: Connecticut building-code restrictions, the minutes note, apply only to commercial buildings and state buildings are governed separately, so local educational policies and model ordinances can play a role for residential and municipal lighting. Repasz pointed commissioners to the Lights Out Connecticut website as a source of sample ordinance language and outreach materials.
Commissioners discussed a "good neighbor" educational focus rather than immediate regulation; Bethany Sheffer said the town attorney recommended clarifying in the Commission's mission statement that it is an advisory body. The Commission did not take a formal vote on a lighting ordinance at the meeting.
Next steps indicated in the minutes included continued discussion of outreach and educational strategies and reference to nearby towns that have pursued dark-sky work for multiple years.
