Lights

There's going to be a town meeting on 11/12 here in Rosamond and the subjest is
1st, a new higher fee to home owners to pay for street lighting. 2nd, the
paying for new street lighting in a park and in areas where there is none at
this time.

I will be there and I want to have some good ideas on hand to give to them to
save money. Ya, I know that No Lights would be best, but the powers that be here
are going to put them in no matter what, so I want to give them ideas of what
KIND of lights to use.

I want to hear your ideas too, to see if I can add them into what I will give
them. I'll be printing up my fact sheet.



--
"In this universe the night was falling,the shadows were lengthening
towards an east that would not know another dawn.
But elsewhere the stars were still young and the light of morning
lingered: and along the path he once had followed, man would one day go
again."

Arthur C. Clarke, The City & The Stars

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what worked for me to get a developer to include light rules in his deed
restrictions was 1) keep it simple
2) show these examples from IDA

http://www.darksky.org/~ida/infoshts/is122.html

when I first approached my developer with the idea of light restrictions,
his defenses went up.
then I tried , "no lights above horizontal and keep it on your property".
simple statement, but still he resisted.
then I showed him the examples cited above and how easy it was to achieve
good lighting.
the restrictions were added to the deed restrictions.
most people aren't intrested in light regulations until the night sky is
gone. if you show the authorities how easy it is to please both sides, they
will be willing to accomodate you.

good luck,
jon

"Starlord" wrote in message
...
There's going to be a town meeting on 11/12 here in Rosamond and the
subjest is
1st, a new higher fee to home owners to pay for street lighting. 2nd, the
paying for new street lighting in a park and in areas where there is none
at
this time.

I will be there and I want to have some good ideas on hand to give to them
to
save money. Ya, I know that No Lights would be best, but the powers that
be here
are going to put them in no matter what, so I want to give them ideas of
what
KIND of lights to use.

I want to hear your ideas too, to see if I can add them into what I will
give
them. I'll be printing up my fact sheet.



--
"In this universe the night was falling,the shadows were lengthening
towards an east that would not know another dawn.
But elsewhere the stars were still young and the light of morning
lingered: and along the path he once had followed, man would one day go
again."

Arthur C. Clarke, The City & The Stars

SIAR
www.starlords.org
Freelance Writers Shop
http://www.freelancewrittersshop.netfirms.com
Telescope Buyers FAQ
http://home.inreach.com/starlord
Ad World
http://adworld.netfirms.com



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Jax wrote:
then I tried , "no lights above horizontal and keep it on your property".

That's a very good approach.

I'll add not to worry about the type of bulb; just concentrate on being
sure the lights are shielded (at the *very least* above the horizontal).
Say little about astronomy. Concentrate on glare reduction instead.
Light entering a person's eye directly from the fixture is glare. Glare
reduction via shielding makes things *more* visible at night, improving
safety and making the lighting more effective. Glare is of particular
concern to the elderly; their vision is often much more sensitive to
it's negative effects. Ask them why they put shades on their indoor
lamps... Reducing glare makes it more pleasant to be outside at night
(you can see better and there is no need to shield your eyes), improving
everyone's quality of life. Lastly, proper shielding directs the light
that would otherwise light up the sky or enter the eye of a passing
motorist to the place intended, making the street light much more
effective. The resulting ability to use lower wattage bulbs or wider
spacing of the lights will result in real savings to the community.

Clear skies,
Greg

--
Greg Crinklaw
Astronomical Software Developer
Cloudcroft, New Mexico, USA (33N, 106W, 2700m)

SkyTools Software for the Observer:
http://www.skyhound.com/cs.html

Skyhound Observing Pages:
http://www.skyhound.com/sh/skyhound.html

I would get help by the "experts". Go to the Dark Sky Association web
site (others will have to give the exact URL to you) for information.
Too bad you don't have more time...there is a fantastic self running
CD slide/multimedia show that a friend picked up when he was at
Starizona. It was obviously aimed at Arizona...but really excellent
presentation.

In short...what you are looking for are lower wattage bulbs and
fixtures that don't aim sideways or up. The worst are upwards shining
billboard lights, sports fields lights and those big ball shaped
lights in parking lots. A huge amount of light goes upwards into space
taking away the night sky and wasting MILLIONS of dollars in
electrical energy. The ideal light fixtures are flat cut off
enclosures...ones that direct the light only downwards. As far as
street lights. My new home is in the suberbs of Michigan...there are
NO streetlights there and it is delightful...the only lights are
subdued dim house lights and perhaps some very low wattage garden path
lights.

I think if you go to the Dark Sky Association web site you will find
lots of facts that answer the general belief that lots of lights make
it "safer". Often those lights only provide lights to ATTRACT kids and
others to areas to make trouble. Sort of like the moths gathering
around a light at night effect.

We all know that this is a loosing battle...but at least we can help
slow this down. It is a shame that many of todays kids DON'T see the
skies.

What you need to do is throw their arguments back in their face...make
them provide proof of why they need them...and than use the cost of
all that waste energy and equipment and picked up by the home owners
as a tool on your side. Most importantly...don't just roll over...make
it hard for them to get the lights approved ;-)

Bob Berta

"Starlord" wrote in message ...
There's going to be a town meeting on 11/12 here in Rosamond and the subjest is
1st, a new higher fee to home owners to pay for street lighting. 2nd, the
paying for new street lighting in a park and in areas where there is none at
this time.

I will be there and I want to have some good ideas on hand to give to them to
save money. Ya, I know that No Lights would be best, but the powers that be here
are going to put them in no matter what, so I want to give them ideas of what
KIND of lights to use.

I want to hear your ideas too, to see if I can add them into what I will give
them. I'll be printing up my fact sheet.



--
"In this universe the night was falling,the shadows were lengthening
towards an east that would not know another dawn.
But elsewhere the stars were still young and the light of morning
lingered: and along the path he once had followed, man would one day go
again."

Arthur C. Clarke, The City & The Stars

SIAR
www.starlords.org
Freelance Writers Shop
http://www.freelancewrittersshop.netfirms.com
Telescope Buyers FAQ
http://home.inreach.com/starlord
Ad World
http://adworld.netfirms.com



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Ask them why they put shades on their indoor
lamps... Reducing glare makes it more pleasant to be outside at night
(you can see better and there is no need to shield your eyes), improving
everyone's quality of life.


The shade of a lamp is one of the better anolgies I've read for describing why
it's of use to have cut-off fixtures.

Todd

http://www.backyardastronomy.com
http://www.skynewsmagazine.com
http://www.members.aol.com/tdcarls/s...otography.html

"Starlord" ha scritto nel messaggio
...

I will be there and I want to have some good ideas on hand to give to them
to
save money...

Good job, Starlord. I know you haven't much time to get ready, but if you
could have a look on our site http://www.cielobuio.org you'll find a nice
leaflet (http://www.vialattea.net/cielobuio/s...pieghevole.zip)
summarizing the directives of Lombardy Regional Law against light pollution
(which, BTW, quickly became the Czech Republic National Law agains light
pollution) showing various kind of allowed and not-allowed fixtures.
Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words, and you'll find also a
gallery of "monsters" ("I mostri del cielo") showing i.e. how a parking lot
can become a nigthmare.
As far as bulbs are concerned, try to avoid halogen lamps: they will
probably say that this white light will increase the beauty of leaves green
color (and you can reply that they are meaning the Milky Way is a bad
sight...) but the same result can be achieved by compact fluorescent bulbs
with less energy requirements and less power.
There is also an English section on the site, even if not as complete as the
Italian one.

Dark (and clean) skies,

--
Beta Persei
45° 35' N
08° 51' E

I'm not sure this has been delivered. I'm trying again, sorry if you got it
twice.
Beta Persei

"Starlord" ha scritto nel messaggio
...

I will be there and I want to have some good ideas on hand to give to
them
to
save money...

Good job, Starlord. I know you haven't much time to get ready, but if you
could have a look on our site http://www.cielobuio.org you'll find a nice
leaflet (http://www.vialattea.net/cielobuio/s...pieghevole.zip)
summarizing the directives of Lombardy Regional Law against light
pollution
(which, BTW, quickly became the Czech Republic National Law agains light
pollution) showing various kind of allowed and not-allowed fixtures.
Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words, and you'll find also a
gallery of "monsters" ("I mostri del cielo") showing i.e. how a parking
lot
can become a nigthmare.
As far as bulbs are concerned, try to avoid halogen lamps: they will
probably say that this white light will increase the beauty of leaves
green
color (and you can reply that they are meaning the Milky Way is a bad
sight...) but the same result can be achieved by compact fluorescent bulbs
with less energy requirements and less power.
There is also an English section on the site, even if not as complete as
the
Italian one.

Dark (and clean) skies,

--
Beta Persei
45° 35' N
08° 51' E

In message , Starlord
writes
There's going to be a town meeting on 11/12 here in Rosamond and the subjest is
1st, a new higher fee to home owners to pay for street lighting. 2nd, the
paying for new street lighting in a park and in areas where there is none at
this time.

I will be there and I want to have some good ideas on hand to give to them to
save money. Ya, I know that No Lights would be best, but the powers
that be here
are going to put them in no matter what, so I want to give them ideas of what
KIND of lights to use.

You probably won't win on this one, but orange low pressure sodium
lights in full cut off fixtures have by far the highest efficiency of
any street lighting system. And they give fairly smooth diffuse lighting
with soft shadows.

It is unlikely in the US that you will be able to persuade people to
accept LPS lights though and you will likely end up with dazzling HPS
using twice as much electricity. However, you might just win the day
with the energy saving argument if your townsfolk are moderately
environmentally friendly.

I want to hear your ideas too, to see if I can add them into what I will give
them. I'll be printing up my fact sheet.

The material I submitted to the government select committee on light
pollution and astronomy in the UK is now online at:

http://www.nezumi.demon.co.uk/lightp...tpollution.htm

There are tables showing the efficacy of various lighting systems and
references to various other useful documents.

The big problem in the UK is that most of the luminaires are truly
dreadful and send nearly 30% of the light straight up into the sky.

Regards,
--
Martin Brown

Another little note is that you guys went through the power shortage a few
years ago with a lot of power outages. Remind them that adding that much
more power usage to the grid will only bring on the next power shortage that
much faster. The IDA's ideas of putting the light to the ground is a good
one for more reasons than one.

--
Bob May
Losing weight is easy! If you ever want to lose weight, eat and drink less.
Works evevery time it is tried!

Rosamond is the town who built a libery that has those box type lights, which
SHOULD have been good, only they stuck a clear plastic dome on top and now the
light shines upward too. :

I'm gearing up for a major battle.


--
"In this universe the night was falling,the shadows were lengthening
towards an east that would not know another dawn.
But elsewhere the stars were still young and the light of morning
lingered: and along the path he once had followed, man would one day go
again."

Arthur C. Clarke, The City & The Stars

SIAR
www.starlords.org
Freelance Writers Shop
http://www.freelancewrittersshop.netfirms.com
Telescope Buyers FAQ
http://home.inreach.com/starlord
Ad World
http://adworld.netfirms.com

"Bob May" wrote in message
...
Another little note is that you guys went through the power shortage a few
years ago with a lot of power outages. Remind them that adding that much
more power usage to the grid will only bring on the next power shortage that
much faster. The IDA's ideas of putting the light to the ground is a good
one for more reasons than one.

--
Bob May
Losing weight is easy! If you ever want to lose weight, eat and drink less.
Works evevery time it is tried!




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