November 3, 2021: Dark Sky Light Management Workshop Recap

written by admin | November 5, 2021

We held a workshop on Wednesday, November 3rd, 2021 that covered light management, and what we are working on at the Lodge to foster dark-skies at the Lodge and in the Keweenaw.

The Lodge has been working to reduce it’s light pollution on the dark sky for the past year or so. KML staff member, Mike Miller, has been responsible for the light management, and inventorying the lighting at the Lodge. As part of that activity, he has been able to see where the Lodge can improve on both lighting and energy efficiency. This has helped move the Lodge forward with the International Dark Sky Park designation application that is currently being reviewed by the International Dark-Sky Association.

In this workshop, Mike went through the history of the Keweenaw and the Lodge to give the attendees a perspective of where the Lodge has come from, and what makes the Keweenaw so special — including for stargazing. He went through the negative effects that artificial light has on one’s environment, and then what we have been doing at the Lodge to decrease our effect on light pollution. 

Here is a bullet point of the topics covered:

  • Brief Lodge/Keweenaw history and background
  • International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) background info
  • Defined Light Pollution, its varieties (glare, cluster, light trespass, and skyglow), and explained the effects of light pollution on the environment (fireflies, sea turtles, birds and insects specifically), as well as the negative effects on humans.
  • IDAs various requirements for outdoor lighting
  • The Lodge’s strategy for choosing our dark sky lighting and our lighting management plan
  • Q&A

The 30-minute talk can be viewed via the link below. 

About the Instructor: Mike Miller

Mike Miller is a staff member at the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge. As a member of the facilities maintenance team at the Lodge, he is responsible for the light management at the resort, and has been working to have the Lodge’s lighting be dark-sky compliant in order for Lodge guests and the general public to enjoy the stars at the top of the Keweenaw.