Glynn brings turtle-friendly lighting plan to residents

Two public meetings on Monday about the Glynn County lighting ordinance pitted residents’ safety concerns against advocates who seek more protections for nesting sea turtles on the area’s barrier islands.

As the update to the antiquated zoning ordinances nears a final vote, Glynn County staff held two public town-hall-style meetings on St. Simons Monday. The 2 p.m. meeting, which lasted two hours, was packed with residents, most of whom have owned homes on the rapidly growing island for decades. 

The revised ordinances related to beachfront lighting to help protect sea turtles drew the most attention. As explained by Mark Dodd, the Sea Turtle Program Coordinator for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, modern ordinances address the total amount of light spilling onto the beach, the quality of light, and the directionality of the light, including whether the lights are directed upward or downward, whether they create sky glow, and whether they illuminate buildings or vegetation that ultimately can be seen by turtles on the beach.

The Current GA was the first to report in July that the more than 100-foot-tall lights illuminating the I-95 intersection at Buc-ee’s were distracting sea turtles hatchlings on the barrier islands. The Georgia Department of Transportation said the county could determine whether the high-rise lights were turned on or off without compromising driver safety. The lights remain on.

Glynn County has a significant number of sea turtle nesting events, primarily on Jekyll, Little St. Simons Island and Sea Island. Last summer, more than 16,000 hatchlings were counted on those three islands alone.

“Eggs incubate for about 60 days. Hatchlings emerge, make their way to the ocean. The primary cue they use is to go towards the lightest point on the horizon. So if you have a lot of artificial light on the beach, they end up going the wrong way, and they become disoriented,” said Dodd. 

The two main components in the current ordinances are that light should not directly illuminate the beach and that any bulb, lamp, or other light source must be shielded so it cannot be seen from the beach. 

The new sections address directionality and the light quality. 

The new directionality section outlines some types of artificial light fixtures that are specifically prohibited, including any light fixture that projects light upward or directly illuminates vegetation, buildings, or trees.  

The other new section addresses wavelength, since sea turtles are less affected by long wavelengths. It prohibits any lights that aren’t amber, red LED, or lights that produce wavelengths less than 560 nanometers. Light sources that are amber, orange or red are less disruptive than white or multicolored lights, experts say. 

Some raised concerns about the updated lighting ordinance, saying it goes too far. 

Lauren Zinskie, the CEO of the Golden Isles Association of Realtors, said they are seeking a precise technical definition of artificial lighting fixtures so homeowners know how to comply with the new enforcement. 

“And the other thing is that the final penalty for this violation is actually the revocation of a certificate of occupancy for the property,” she added. “We’re not sure if everyone’s aware of that, but that is something that we feel is overreaching in the verbiage, so we’re asking that to be reconsidered as a punishment.”

The assistant county manager, Danny Smith, clarified that he didn’t believe anyone’s certificate of occupancy would be revoked. 

Sharon Altenbach, who was representing the Sea Island Property Owners Association, agreed with the Golden Isles Association of Realtors, saying that they feel that the beachfront lighting ordinance could be simplified. 

“I think we can have some major issues as pertains to safety and the way that the property insurance community will review this,” Altenbach said. “I’ve had a number of our residents that are concerned about their grandchildren, swimming pool safety, nighttime lighting, drowning. These are issues that are true concerns for our residents.”

The lighting ordinances will be seasonal, in effect only during the sea turtle nesting season from May to October. 

“Similar ordinances are pretty much in place everywhere you go. Conservative communities and others in the southeast,” said Catherine Ridley, Vice President of Education and Communications for 100 Miles. “So if you go to Florida or South Carolina, North Carolina, you’re going to find updated lighting ordinances, and we have one in place. It’s just been in place since 1984, when a lot of our hairstyles and our technology looked a lot different.”