Lights over Buc-ee’s interstate exit dimmer – but not to help baby turtles

If you’ve headed north on I-95 from the Golden Isles or stopped at the local Buc-ee’s, you may have noticed a change: dimmer lights at Exit 42.

That’s the site of the yearlong controversy over potential harm to baby hatchling sea turtles from the unusually bright lights installed at the Texas-based super gas station. But the lower wattage now in effect isn’t to save the turtles. It’s due to burned-out bulbs and a lightning strike.

Despite receiving written consent from the Georgia Department of Transportation to turn off the lights and criticism from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the county hasn’t budged and has said it has no plans to turn the brighter lights off.

Instead, other forces came into play, resulting in dimmer lights. Brittany Dozier, the Glynn County spokeswoman, said that several masts have experienced outages because several towers are “de-energized” – they lost power, likely due to a lightning strike. The county has directed staff to restore power to the affected towers.

Environmental advocates have warned the county that artificial lighting on its beaches could disorient baby sea turtles, which, in search of the ocean, instinctively head toward the brightest point in the sky. On undeveloped beaches, that point is the moon’s reflection on the water, but when artificial lights are present, the hatchlings sometimes head toward them.

The county saw 307 sea turtle nests on its beaches last year. Nests can contain more than 100 turtles.

Earlier this year, it seemed the county would add more protections for baby sea turtles when it updated its zoning ordinance. Its initial draft included revisions to the county code that would address the total amount of light spilling onto the beach, the quality of light, and the directionality of the light. Howver, the second draft gutted many of those lighting restrictions.

The county said it is working with Georgia Power to convert the outdated high-mast lights at exit 42 to LED lights. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

“The lights meet GDOT specifications for highway lighting and are 12 miles from the coast,” Dozier said.