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New law limits
lights on ocean

Question: I was just wondering what the laws are concerning lights shining directly into the ocean from seaside homes. I thought it was illegal because it bothers ocean life. We have a neighbor who constantly leaves his lights on day and night shining directly into the ocean. Can anything be done?

Answer: The state Legislature this year passed House Bill 895, prohibiting certain artificial lights from shining into the ocean, because of their negative effects on sea turtles and birds.

The bill became law as Act 224 on July 13, without the governor's signature.

Exempt from the law are lights needed for government operations in harbors and airports, as well as lights from hotels that don't go beyond 30 feet of the shoreline.

Specifically, Act 224 amends the State Coastal Zone Management law to define artificial light and other terms, to prohibit artificial light on shoreline and ocean waters, and to amend the existing Special Management Area (SMA) guidelines to add "light displacement" as an impact that should be minimized "where reasonable," explained Henry Eng, director of the city Department of Planning and Permitting.

His department is responsible for implementing and enforcing the new law.

Under the Revised Ordinances of Honolulu, any violation of light displacement requirements in an SMA permit already was subject to civil and additional fines, he said.

Basically, Act 224 formalized a coastal impact mitigation measure that was already being implemented on Oahu, Eng said.

Historically, he said, requirements for shading, or directing artificial light so that it does not affect ocean areas, have been included in permit conditions imposed by the city. These conditions have been placed on developments that had raised community and/or agency concerns about the impacts of artificial night lighting on native birds, coastal views or other coastal resources, he said.

While Act 224 doesn't provide any additional enforcement powers to the city, "It highlights a potential impact to coastal resources that needs to be addressed in administering SMA permit regulations," Eng said.

"We do not know whether a particular class of use would be most affected," he said when asked who would be most impacted by Act 224. Projects are evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Unless part of a larger development, private single-family dwellings are not subject to SMA permit requirements, unless the homeowner is building in a shoreline setback area, Eng said.

Anyone concerned about light pollution in coastal areas can contact the Department of Planning and Permitting's Code Compliance Branch at 527-5873.

Eng said more information on SMA permit requirements can be obtained by clicking on "download permits" at www.honoluludpp.org. The site also has a range of property information, he said.

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