| A proposal to regulate lighting in Fort Bend County, pushed by George Observatory enthusiasts, may come up for public hearings and then a vote by Commissioners Court.
So far, the proposal has received positive and negative responses from officials in homeowners associations near the George Observatory, while Precinct 1 Commissioner Tom Stavinoha supports the proposed project.
Philip Inderwiezen, a member of the Fort Bend Astronomy Club, said he has lived in the area of the Brazos Bend State Park, which houses the observatory, for 10 years.
Four years ago, recalls Inderwiezen, he became startled by his own shadow while observing stars from a field, and then became aware of the light pollution in Fort Bend County. Inderwiezen drafted the lighting proposal.
The wrong types of lighting, said Inderwiezen, may project light into the sky. Dust and water vapors, then, become reflected and light scatters back down to earth and hinders the ability to see stars.
Inderwiezen said he worked with State Rep. Dora Olivo, D-Rosenberg, to see the passage of 2001's House Bill 164, which grants county commissioners courts the authority to regulate lighting in counties located within 57 miles of an observatory, as defined by the bill.
Now, Inderwiezen has presented a proposal to Assistant County Attorney James Stavinoha which calls for lighting shields on various types of lights in the unincorporated area of Fort Bend County near the George Observatory.
If the regulations meet the approval of the county attorney, the proposal will be discussed in public hearings, and then Commissioners Court will take a vote on the proposal.
Inderwiezen says all existing lighting will be grandfathered, and he says shielded lighting has many benefits over unshielded lighting.
His proposal will regulate highway lighting, street lighting, billboard lighting and at outdoor sales lots such as at auto dealerships, among other types.
Inderwiezen said one major culprit in the light pollution of Fort Bend County is security lights purchased by individuals, mostly who live in lesser dense areas.
"It's just a wasteful type of lighting," he said.
His proposal, which he says resulted from research with the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America and comes after many revisions and talks with experts, calls for flat lenses to be used in lighting, and for an end to new installations of sag lenses, which lead to light projected upward.
Already, he said, a 1999 state regulation led to similar regulations on all state facilities, and he says he is simply following that lead.
Inderwiezen says the regulations will benefit all people in the county, and not just those who use the observatory.
Sag lenses often used in highway lighting, said Inderwiezen, result in glare for drivers and ultimately present a safety issue, especially for the elderly.
Inderwiezen points out the Brazos Lakes subdivision on FM 762 requested Reliant Energy install light pollution-friendly lights in their subdivision, but instead, the neighborhood was equipped with sag lighting.
"If we had a community standard, that never would have happened," he said.
Jesse Cuellar, with the Brazos Lakes subdivision, said his neighborhood supports the idea of lighting regulations, and said changing out the lights would be the responsibility of Reliant.
"As far as the subdivision, we'd be more than willing to be in any kind of compliance," he said.
Barbara Jackson, with the Bridlewood Homeowners Association, said she feels the lighting ordinances could present safety issues, given proposals to extend the Grand Parkway over the Bridlewood subdivision.
"They're going to have to have high-rise lighting for those cars," she said.
Stavinoha said he supports the policy, saying that information presented to him by Inderwiezen suggests compliant lighting under the new policy may cost more to purchase, but will last longer.
"In the long run, the amount of electricity they burn is a lot less," he said.
A major question for Stavinoha, then, is enforcement. Stavinoha said rather than sending Sheriff's deputies to seek lighting violations, the county could act on complaints made by the George Foundation.
Stavinoha said he does not feel the lighting ordinance would hurt growth, and both he and Inderwiezen point out that neighborhoods in Sugar Land use compliant lighting.
Two years ago, said Stavinoha, he encountered much opposition to the proposal, but many people changed their minds after realizing that all existing lighting is grandfathered.
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