Light Trespass

When the glare from lights interferes with your sleep, your view of the night sky, or intrudes upon other quality of life aspects its called Light Trespass. The trespass may come from poorly shielded or aimed lights at a large shopping center, an athletic facility, or a neighbor's flood lights.

The International Dark-Sky Association website is the best single source for technical information on light trespass. On the IDA website you will find guidance on the causes and technical cures of glare. You will also find a model ordinance your local government can adopt to minimize light trespass from new development.

Community & Environmental Defense Services (CEDS) can help you develop a strategy to win the adoption of a good light trespass ordinance, then ensure that prevention measures are fully implemented. We can also bring in qualified lighting experts to analyze glare and formulate solutions.

Our assistance can take a variety of forms. First, our advice is available free to citizens by phone 1-800-773-4571 or send us an e-mail. Second, you can download our 280-page book for free by clicking on the following title: How To Win Land Development Issues: A Citizens Guide To Preserving & Enhancing Quality of Life in Developing Areas.

How To Win Land Development Issues contains extensive advice on evaluating the pros and cons of a variety of development proposals. Our book also describes how to acquire the resources needed to deal with a poorly conceived development proposals. These resources include volunteers, funds, a good attorney, expert witnesses, and political clout. Finally, about a third of the citizens we help decide to hire CEDS to carry out the evaluation on their behalf then formulate and execute a winning strategy. The best news is that 75% of the folks we help win their campaigns.

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