Working toward legislation to curb light pollution in Illinois.
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Current News From Our CoalitionHere's the place to keep up to date with our group's activities, and news which we'd like to share with the entire community of citizens who are concerned about our environment and the role which manmade light plays in it. Check back often for updates. If you or your group have related news to share, send it along to us for submission to this page.
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July 17, 2010Team member Drew Carhart was the guest speaker at the quarterly meeting of the Bird Conservation Network, where he described to the attendees how manmade light is affecting the environment. The BCN is a coalition of Illinois bird watching, research, and conservation groups, which contributes a tremendous amount to the effort of preserving wild birds and their habitats, and to further our understanding of ornithology and area ecology. Our group is happy to serve as a resource for the BCN and its member organizations as they explore the impact of mammade light on bird populations and nocturnal ecology. |
July 14, 2010Our team gave a presentation to to the Village of Oak Lawn Green Team, filling them in on the issues related to how our society currently lights up the night. We stand ready to help them (and people from all Illinois municipalities) as they work toward saving energy, money, and their town's nighttime environment by adopting sustainable lighting practices. |
June 23, 2010Show your support for reducing the impact of artificial light on the night skies over our country's (the U.S.A.'s) national parks by voting your support to this proposal (click for link), suggesting that the subject of preserving those night skies be addressed. The loss of the stars, Milky Way, and other celestial sights over our national preserves changes their timeless nature no less than logging away their trees, leveling their hills for mines, or draining their lakes and streams them would. |
June 2, 2010Our work in Will County, providing advise to the county government on how to address the illumination issues surrounding new installations of digital billboards, has made brought it to our awareness that it is hard to find good information on the subject, provided by parties with an understanding of lighting engineering and environmental impact and with no financial stake in outdoor advertising. In response to this lack of resources, we have drawn up a white paper on electronic signage, which includes the conclusions we've reached based on our research into the real-world, historical application of outdoor signs. We hope this resource will prove valuable to municipal leaders who are trying to understand the technicalities involved in operating and regulating digital signs. |
May 25, 2010Our group was featured as a major resource in the article Light pollution dulls the night sky for stargazers - and drains city funds in the online Medill Reports from the Medill school of journalism at Northwestern University. |
May 22, 2010We set up our traveling exhibit at the Village of Homer Glen's 2010 Earth Day/Arbor Day Celebration, and shared much discussion of lighting issues with many attendees and fellow exhibitors. The Will County event also was fertile ground for discussion of the plans for adopting regulations of digital billboards (see items below). |
May 19, 2010Our team appeared at the request of the Kane County Energy & Environmental Technology Committee to fill them in on conservation issues surrounding outdoor illumination. Team member Drew Carhart gave a presentation on responsible lighting principles, and the committee discussed plans for creating new lighting guidelines for the county. We look forward to assisting them in the effort toward increased energy and nighttime conservation. |
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May 17, 2010Our board members were featured prominently in cover story in the Herald News (Will County) article on the County Board's work to develop new regulations governing the installation of digital billboards. |
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April 28, 2010Our team attended the Calumet Summit 2010 at Purdue University's Hammond, Indiana campus, to connect with scores of organizations and individuals who have concerns related to the natural environment of the region around the southern end of Lake Michigan. |
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April 27, 2010Our group is serving as a stakeholder in the Will County Land Use Department's committee work on re-working the county's zoning ordinance content pertaining to outdoor advertising. We are bringing to the table our expertise on outdoor lighting matters, and our commitment to environmental responsibility. Major concerns for the county include deciding on a policy to address the use of digital billboards, which are not covered in current County ordinances. |
April 24, 2010We participated in Naperville for Clean Energy and Conservation's Earth Day 2010 event at North Central College, discussing outdoor lighting issues with many attendees and other exhibitors. |
April 18, 2010We set up our exhibits at Will County C.A.R.E.'s 8th Annual Earth Day Fest at Lewis University in Romeoville, and chatted with many attendees and other exhibitors about the many negative environmental impacts of our society's current outdoor lighting practices. |
April 9, 2010Our team took part in the Stargazing in Homer Township event, helping a large crowd of area residents view the wonders of the nighttime heavens, and to understand how manmade light is increasingly hiding those views from us all. |
April 1, 2010We were invited to speak for a joint meeting of the Citizens for Glen Ellyn Preservation and the Glen Ellyn Cool Cities Coalition; team member Debra Lazar Pearl led the presentation on local lighting practices, how they effect residential environments, and what "night friendly" and energy-saving alternatives are available. |
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| Run your mouse pointer over the photo to see the same scene photographed just before the start of Earth Hour 2010. Shutting off just some unnecessary lights makes a difference in the Chicago skyline, but does nothing about all the streetlight and park light glare... |
March 27, 2010Team member Debra Norvil was interviewed on WGN Radio, Nick Digilio's show. The interview highlighted the Illinois Coalition for Responsible Outdoor Lighting, the recent passage of Illinois House Resolution #0884, and Earth Hour in the Village of Homer Glen. |
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March 27, 2010Earth Hour is here again; this annual event serves to put a "public face" on energy conservation, global climate change, and what each individual, business and town can do to actively take part in the solution. Earth Hour focuses on the reduction of unnecessary lighting; this area of energy waste was chosen specifically because it is so egregious, so widespread, and so easily remedied-- just turn off unneeded lights! What we need to do is move to the next step: Don't turn them back on when Earth Hour is over! |
March 25, 2010Team member Debra Norvil gave a presentation on light pollution to the fourth through eighth grade students at Lemont Montessori School. |
March 24, 2010Team member Drew Carhart gave a presentation on the energy waste involved in current outdoor lighting practices to the environmentally-conscious folks gathered at the March meeting of Elgin Green Drinks. |
March 17, 2010We are extremely happy to report that Illinois State House of Representatives House Resolution 0884, which "Expresses the support of the House of Representatives for improved night preservation practices in the State of Illinois and encourages municipalities and State agencies to research and adopt suitable outdoor lighting practices" was adopted without debate on the floor the House today! We want to express our appreciation to all of the Representatives who recognize the importance of night, and our responsibility to preserve it far better than our society has been doing in the recent past, including: Rep. Renée Kosel (81st District), who introduced and sponsored the Resolution; the additional Co-Sponsors: Rep. Karen May (Chief Co-Sponsor, 58th District) Rep. Patricia R. Bellock (Chief Co-Sponsor, 47th District) Rep. Darlene J. Senger (Chief Co-Sponsor, 96th District) Rep. Mike Fortner (Chief Co-Sponsor, 95th District) Rep. Michael W. Tryon (64th District) Rep. Elizabeth Coulson (17th District) Rep. Sandra M. Pihos (42nd District) Rep. Sandy Cole (62nd District) Rep. Mark H. Beaubien, Jr. (52nd District) Rep. Franco Coladipietro (45th District) Rep. Dennis M. Reboletti (46th District) Rep. Randy Ramey, Jr. (55th District) Rep. Sidney H. Mathias (53rd District) Rep. Donald L. Moffitt (74th District) Rep. Robert W. Pritchard (70th District); and the members of the Illinois House Environmental Health Committee, who unanimously passed the Resolution on to the full House: Rep. Karen May (58th District) Rep. Kevin A. McCarthy (37th District) Rep. Jil Tracy (93rd District) Rep. Paul D. Froehlich (56th District) Rep. Julie Hamos (18th District) Rep. Naomi D. Jakobsson (103rd District) Rep. Elaine Nekritz (57th District) Rep. Robert Rita (28th District) Rep. Chapin Rose (110th District) Rep. Timothy L. Schmitz (49th District) Rep. Ron Stephens (102nd District) Rep. Michael W. Tryon (64th District) Rep. Dave Winters (68th District) Rep. Karen A. Yarbrough (7th District) |
March 15, 2010Lewis University's press release followup to our Manmade Light at Night symposium. |
March 11, 2010Illinois State House of Representatives House Resolution 0884, which "Expresses the support of the House of Representatives for improved night preservation practices in the State of Illinois and encourages municipalities and State agencies to research and adopt suitable outdoor lighting practices" was passed by unanimous vote by the House Environmental Health Committee today. Its next stop is a vote of the entire State House; its passage there will represent the first commitment by statewide government in Illinois to the concept of nighttime stewardship, and a tremendous boon for our cause. |
March 11, 2010
Our day-long symposium attracted over 100 attendees from across Illinois and beyond, and generated a large amount of positive feedback. Our thanks go out to the day's speakers, who each did a tremendous job of presenting strong, substantiated reasons for improving outdoor lighting practices, drawn on evidence of energy waste, ecological damage, human health and safety issues, and the costs to society from the loss of the nighttime sky. |
March 9, 2010U.S. Congressman Mike Quigley (Illinois 5th District) introduced H.R.4797, the “Federal Bird-Safe Buildings Act of 2010”, into the House of Representatives. If made into law, the bill would require the General Services Administration to include bird-safe construction in new government buildings, and bird-safe practices in both new and existing facilities; this includes a mandate to "address interior and exterior lighting’s impacts on native bird species." Bird injury and death caused directly by how we light buildings, both on the exterior, and with interior lighting after hours shining out through windows and other translucent surfaces, totals up to staggering numbers each year in this country. The federal government rightly should take a leadership role in correcting this problem; we strongly support the measure, and encourage all environmentally concerned U.S. citizens to contact their Representatives and encourage their support for H.R.4797. |
February 28, 2010A feature article in the Southtown Star newspaper talks about our team member Debra Norvil's successful efforts in her home town of Homer Glen to improve outdoor lighting conditions there, and about the work of our coalition. |
February 11, 2010Only one month remains before our symposium, "Manmade Light at Night: Perils and Promises"; remember that pre-registration (by mail) is required, and that space is limited. Visit the Symposium Webpage for instructions on registering. The event will feature fine speakers -- specialists in the various topics covered on this website -- who are coming in from around the country to inform us. If any issues surrounding the use of artificial light outdoors at night concern you, DON'T MISS THIS EVENT! |
February 4, 2010Illinois State Representative Renée Kosel (R, 81st District) filed House Resolution 0884, "for improved night preservation practices in the State of Illinois and encourages municipalities and State agencies to research and adopt suitable outdoor lighting practices" today. We are extremely proud to have worked with Rep. Kosel in getting the resolution written and submitted; it will serve to raise attention to our issues and "open the door" to future discussions with our state leaders about improving outdoor lighting practices in Illinois. |
January 20, 2010Team member Debra Norvil inaugurated our status as a Member Organization of Chicago Wilderness by attending a meeting of the C.W. Steering Committee. During the comment session, Debra invited the Steering Committee members to attend our March 11, 2010 "Manmade Light at Night: Perils and Promises" symposium at Lewis University. |
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January 7, 2010We exhibited again this year at the DuPage Environmental Summit, sponsored by the DuPage Environmental Commission, The Conservation Foundation, The DuPage Community Foundation, the DuPage County Board - Environmental Committee, the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Benedictine University, SCARCE, and the University of Illinois Extension Service. This year's focus for the summit was on preserving open space; our goal was to remind attendees that open space should look natural both during day and night! |
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December 3, 2009Buildings Magazine's December 2009 issue features the cover story on outdoor lighting titled Improve Outdoor Lighting Practices, written by our team member Drew Carhart. The feature was also selected to be mirrored in Archi-Tech Magazine's December issue. |
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November 3, 2009At their monthly business meeting, the members of the Naperville Astronomical Association voted both to join us as an official Coalition Partner, and to donate funds to become a leading Sponsor for our March 11 "Manmade Light at Night" symposium. We welcome the NAA to our team, and look forward to a cooperative effort to help bring some darkness back to the astronomy group's Chicago-area nighttime skies. (Photo: Debra Lazar Pearl and NAA President Steve Miller) |
October 29, 2009Team members Debra Lazar Pearl and Drew Carhart met with staff from the Smart Energy Design Assistance Center in Champaign to discuss outdoor lighting and energy efficiency. SEDAC is a state agency, run through the University of Illinois, which provides assistance to Illinois businesses and communities to help them reduce energy consumption through the application of better engineering. Our team and SEDAC will be working together to create an informative report on energy-saving outdoor lighting principles. |
October 6, 2009After months of planning, we're delighted to announce that we're organizing Illinois' first public seminar on the "perils and promises" of outdoor lighting, to be held at Lewis University in Romeoville in March of 2010. See our Symposium webpage for more details, and reserve the date of Thursday, March 11 on your calendar now! |
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October 3, 2009Our team exhibited at the "A Day Of Astronomy" public event organized by the Naperville Astronomical Association in recognition of the 2009 International Year of Astronomy. |
September 26, 2009Team member Drew Carhart gave a talk explaining "light pollution" and why the Chicago area has lost its starry night sky as part of a public stargazing event at Cantigny Park in Winfield. |
August 13, 2009The members of the International Astronomical Union voted unanimously at their biennial convention to approve a resoultion "in Defence of the night sky and the right to starlight". Here are some quotes from the text of the resolution: 1. An unpolluted night sky that allows the enjoyment and contemplation of the firmament should be considered a
fundamental socio-cultural and environmental right, and that the progressive degradation of the night sky should be regarded as a
fundamental loss. |
June 17, 2009At the annual meeting of its House of Delegates, the American Medical Association adopted its Resolution 516 "Advocating and Support for Light Pollution Control Efforts and Glare Reduction for Both Public Safety and Energy Savings". We roundly applaud our nation's medical leaders for taking the initiative to recognize the level of impact nighttime illumination has on the well-being of our citizenry. Here are some quotes from the text of the resolution: Whereas, Our AMA has long advocated for policies that are scientifically sound and that positively influence public health policy; and Whereas, We in the AMA have an opportunity to influence and promote legislation at both the state and national level on energy savings through a reduction in light pollution; and Whereas, Light Pollution is increasingly recognized as a waste of energy and a public safety issue... |
May 17, 2009Team member Debra Norvil exhibited at the C.A.R.E. (Citizens Against Ruining the Environment) Earth Day celebration at Dellwood Park in Lockport. |
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May 16, 2009Our team participated in the Citizens for Glen Ellyn Preservation's "It's Good to be Green" event. Debra Norvil and Debra Lazar Pearl addressed outdoor lighting concerns from about 75 attendees, many seeking near-term remedies on their residential properties, such as neighbors flood lights, where to find shielding for existing lights, and information on protections within their village code. |
May 14, 2009Team member Debra Norvil gave a presentation on Light Pollution to the Will County Audubon Society during their monthly meeting. |
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May 3, 2009Our team joined dozens of other exhibitors at the Green Earth Institute's 2009 "Green Earth Fair" in Naperville, where we had been invited to raise public awareness of outdoor lighting issues. |
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April 25, 2009We set up our educational exhibit at the Elgin Climate Change Organization's "ECCO Green Expo", and shared our lighting message with many folks from Kane County and beyond. Team member Drew Carhart was also a speaker during the event. |
April 21, 2009Team members Debra Lazar Pearl and Debra Norvil met with U.S. Congressman Bill Foster's (IL-14) Eastern District Director of Outreach to discuss H.R. 1732, Outdoor Lighting Efficiency Act (see March 26th news item, below), and luminaire efficiency. |
April 8, 2009Our team has created a new 2-page flier aimed at explaining to people in decision-making positions that streetlight fixture choices need to be made based on energy efficiency and environmental responsibility. Much too often we hear about how fixture selections for whole municipalities are still being made based on how the units look in daytime photos in catalogs, totally ignoring the fact that the lights are huge energy consumers, installed to serve an illumination need at night. We welcome your use of the flier as you see fit; it is available for download on the Resources> Our Materials page of this website. |
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March 28, April 2-5 2009Our team members participated in public outreach events during both Earth Hour and the International Year of Astronomy 100 Hours of Astronomy event. Raising public awareness of outdoor lighting issues is one of our major goals, and these events provide an excellent way of tying lighting issues directly to practical issues which matter to people, like energy savings (Earth Hour) and light pollution taking away our ability to see the night sky (100 Hours of Astronomy). |
March 30, 2009We've unveiled a major addition to this website: An "Encyclopedia of Lighting Terminology", featuring definitions of many terms used in lighting engineering, the study of light and the environment, and vision. We hope that this tool helps our visitors learn about and understand our issues better; also that it "keeps us on the same page" when using terms which have vague, multiple, and/or confusing definitions. Many specific terms on other pages of this website are now linked directly to their entry on the encyclopedia page, which can also be found in the website menu under Resources > Encyclopedia of Terms. |
March 26, 2009U.S. Representative Jane Harman (D-California) has introduces H.R. 1732, Outdoor Lighting Efficiency Act, to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. The bill is intended "to provide for standards for energy efficient outdoor lighting". We applaud Congresswoman Harman's efforts, and are in communication with her. Our team's main suggestion is that the bill speaks about outdoor "luminaire efficiency", when in application, it only addresses lamp efficacy, and not the actual overall efficiency of the luminaire. While lamp efficacy is an important factor in energy savings, and perhaps a good step on the path to energy efficiency in outdoor lighting, the bill's wording should not give the impression that total luminaire efficiency is being addressed. |
March 19, 2009Team member Drew Carhart's letter, "LEDs and the environment" about LEDs and outdoor illumination was published in the March 2009 issue of Photonics Spectra. |
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March 18, 2009Team member Debra Norvil presented lectures on Light Pollution to the Earth Science classes of Ms. Flood and Ms. Jackson at Lockport Township High School, District 205. The students were very interested in the subject of Light Pollution as it was new to them. Lockport Township High School is also participating in Earth Hour 2009. |
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March 11, 2009Our team presented a seminar to more than 40 staff members of Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd. at the firm's Rosemont offices and via webcast to their satellite offices. CBBEL is a consulting engineering firm specializing in civil, municipal, traffic, construction, water resources, environmental, structural and mechanical engineering, and their employees had many interesting questions and comments about outdoor lighting practices. Our thanks to CBBEL for inviting us to come and speak. |
March 5, 2009A suburban Chicago newspaper published this fine article about the Village of Homer Glen's planned participation in Earth Hour this year, and their other public night-sky-oriented plans. |
February 18, 2009Illinois State Representative Rich Brauer (R., Springfield) will be presenting HB0854, "Outdoor Lighting Control Act", to the Illinois House Environment & Energy Committee on February 25th. Our coaltion enthusiastically applauds Rep. Brauer for independently deciding that the quality of the nighttime sky over our state is worth protecting. |
February 9, 2009A Joint Task Force of the International Dark-sky Association and the Illuminating Engineering Society released the core portion of the Model Lighting Ordinance (MLO), which they have been working on for a number of years, for public comment. Our coalition has reviewed the document, and is of the opinion that it contains several principle flaws which would limit its application and effectiveness so severely in our state that we could not promote its adoption here.
Of most serious concern are three major items: |
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February 7, 2009Our full team was kept busy at the 2009 "Wild Things" conference, discussing lighting issues with some of the hundreds of attendees. The excellent event was organized by Audubon Chicago Region, Chicago Wilderness, The Nature Conservancy of Illinois, and the Volunteer Stewardship Network; it was held at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Our state is very fortunate to have so many citizens who are sincerely concerned about environmental issues! |
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February 4, 2009Chicago's Mayor Daley announced today that his city will once again serve as a U.S. Flagship City for Earth Hour this year. The Village of Homer Glen is also on board, to serve as a flagship for smaller towns across America; Homer Glen's Mayor Daley recorded this video clip to express his village's support. |
January 28, 2008Team member Drew Carhart gave a lecture to students at Lewis University (Romeoville) on the nighttime natural environment and how manmade light is disturbing it. |
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January 8, 2009We set up our traveling exhibit at the sixth annual DuPage Environmental Summit, which had "Greening Our Transportation and Roads" as its theme (so we did a lot of discussing roadway lighting with attendees!) The event was sponsored by the DuPage Environmental Commission, The Conservation Foundation, the DuPage Community Foundation, the DuPage County Board -Environmental & Transportation Committees, Benedictine University, SCARCE, and the University of Illinois Extension Service. |
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January 7, 2009Our team gave a presentation on our many concerns about outdoor lighting to the Environment and Natural Resources Committee of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP). CMAP is working toward creating a 2040 Comprehensive Vision Plan to guide growth for Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties. We are pleased to announce that following our presentation, the committee members voted to add nighttime environmental stewardship and outdoor lighting improvement goals to their areas of concern in the 2040 Vision Plan. |
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December 12, 2008Our team ran an informative booth at The Illinois Green Governments Coordinating Council's 2008 Sustainable Government Symposium in Springfield, and had the opportunity there to discuss lighting issues with conservation-minded staff members from a number of State agencies. |
December 2, 2008Team member Drew Carhart gave the feature presentation at the monthly meeting of the Naperville Astronomical Association, filling in the astronomers about where light pollution comes from, how stargazers are not the only people (or organisms) suffering from its ill effects, and what can be done about it. |
November 24, 2008Two of our team members met with the Senior Policy Advisor to Illinois Lt. Governor Pat Quinn, and had a good discussion on responsible outdoor lighting. |
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November, 2008It is time to get involved in Earth Hour 2009. The 2007 and 2008 events were wonderfully successful at letting the general population know not only that energy consumption is a critical issue of our time, but that decision making by individuals can make a big difference, and that unnecessary and inefficient outdoor lighting wastes tremendous amounts of electricity. Get personally involved, and encourage your local government to participate. |
November 5, 2008Two of our team members attended a meeting of the Environment & Natural Resource Committee of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, and introduced our concerns to the committee during the public forum section. Considerable discussion ensued, and we've been invited back to give a full presentation at their next meeting (January 7, 2009). |
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October 24, 2008Our group made its public debut today at Lt. Governor Pat Quinn's 2008 Sustainable Cities Symposium. A great crowd of conservation-minded people attended this fine event; we were happy to be a part of it, and met many wonderful, concerned Illinoisans. While we still have a few pages to complete the work on for this website, we welcome our new visitors, hope that the resources we have here now will be helpful for you, and invite you to contact us for further information. |
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October 23, 2008The November 2008 issue of National Geographic Magazine features a fine cover story on manmade lighting and its effects on nature and mankind. Chicago is, much to the shame of Illinois, is featured as a "poster child" of energy waste; nothing at all for us to be proud of! |
September 8, 2008While this website hasn't yet "gone public", and not all of the planned initial content is completed, some of our friends and associates have been invited to take a look at what we have to offer so far, and give us their thoughts and suggestions. Thanks for taking a look! We would definitely like the site to be an effective, useful resource, and we're making every effort to have it present good, factual information in a readily understandable manner. Please feel free to send us your comments and ideas. |
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light pollution Illinois Chicago Cook County DuPage County Will County Springfield energy enviromnent global warming anti light pollution legislation lighting ordinances |
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