Regional News
(Check these pages too: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont)
2011
June 22 — At the Massachusetts State House, the Joint Committee on Telecommunication, Utilities and Energy held a public hearing on the pending dark-sky bills. In addition to a personal appeal from Rep. Sean Garballey (the House cosponsor), testimony was presented by lighting designer Glenn Heinmiller, and by NELPAG members Glenn Chaple and Kelly Beatty.
Apr. 29 — The City Dark will be shown at the Somerville Theater at 7 p.m. as part of Boston's Independent Film Festival.
Mar. 30 — The City Dark, Ian Cheney’s new film about light pollution, will be shown at the 2011 Environmental Film Festival at Yale University at 7 p.m. Discussion to follow with the director, NELPAG's Bob Crelin, and Yale astronomer Robert Zinn.
Feb. 9 — The Planning Board in Chelmsford, MA, approved permits for construction of a two-sided billboard along Route 3. Silver lining: thanks to the town's outdoor-lighting bylaw, the billboard must be illuminated from the top down.
Jan. 21 — NELPAG members have once again introduced an outdoor-lighting bill in the Bay State's legislature. Separate but identical bills were submitted by Rep. Sean Garballey (as HD 1240) and Sen. Cynthia Creem (as SD 911). See the Massachusetts page for details.
Jan. 10 — Mayor Joseph Polisena has ordered town officials to stop paying for 771 streetlights along state highways running through Johnston, RI, as has the mayor of North Providence. For now National Grid is keeping the lights on.
2010
Dec. 20 — Peter Lord, who heads the Island Astronomy Institute, has announced plans for a 9-day-long Maine Starlight Festival, to be held Sept. 23 to Oct. 2, 2011.
Nov. 11 — Officials in Hingham, MA, have settled on fully shielded Pennglobe fixtures with 100w HPS bulbs for the final phase of the town's streetscape project. Details; bid specs.
Nov. 4 — NELPAG's Leo Smith will present an overview of the proposed IDA/IESNA Model Lighting Ordinance at a meeting of the American Society of Landscape Architects (Connecticut chapter). Details here.
Oct. 20 — An article in the Eagle-Tribune describes how officials in Haverhill, MA, are considering turning off many of the city's 4,400 streetlights or adding sensors to reduce energy use.
Sep. 29 — As a follow-up to Renée Loth's article (noted below), a post by Boston.com blogger Rob Anderson contrasts recent legislative inaction on outdoor-lighting laws with the regulations in place elsewhere in New England.
Sep. 25 — Renée Loth explores the problems with battling light pollution in urban environments in a perceptive op-ed column published in today's Boston Globe.
Sep. 9 — Head to Bar Harbor, Maine, for the 2nd annual Acadia Night Sky Festival: five days of lectures, workshops, stargazing, and other events "to promote the protection and enjoyment of Downeast/Acadia’s stellar night sky as a valuable natural resource." Hosted by Island Astronomy Institute.
Aug. 23 — Deadline for public comments on the latest draft of the Model Lighting Ordinance, an effort by the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) and the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) to create standardized wording for outdoor-lighting regulation. The comment form is available here.
July 31 — The Massachusetts State Legislature ended its 2009-10 session without voting on any of the six different outdoor-lighting bills filed over the past two years. Click here for details.
June 16 — Officials in Concord, MA, have approved a plan to remove nearly half of the town's streetlights as a cost-saving measure. Residents have the option to retain a streetlight pegged for removal for $17 a month and a two-year commitment.
June 14 — S.1481, Sen. Cynthia Creem's dark-sky bill, was reported out of the Massachusetts Legislature's Joint Energy Committee favorably this morning. It now goes to the Senate's Ways and Means Committee and, hopefully, from there to the Senate floor for a vote.
Apr. 16 — NELPAG's Kelly Beatty joined IDA executive director Bob Parks to spotlight dark-sky issues at this year's NorthEast Astronomy Forum (NEAF) in Suffern, NY.
Feb. 18 — Green Mountain Power has submitted a plan to the Vermont Public Service Board to offer LED lights to replace worn-out mercury-vapor street lights throughout its service area.