Island County, WA Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass & Shielding (2026)

Section 17.06.570.D governs how light levels are measured, in footcandles at ground level with the meter held parallel to the ground and pointing up. Subsection D.3 sets the substantive caps: lighting must be oriented to the interior of the property rather than onto adjacent properties, streets, or sidewalks; average illumination cannot exceed 1.5 footcandles for lit non-residential areas or 0.55 footcandles for residential areas; no single fixture can exceed 1.0 footcandle at the property line; that maximum drops to 0.5 footcandle where the adjoining parcel is zoned Low or Medium Density; and total spillover from all on-site fixtures cannot exceed 0.2 footcandle measured five feet beyond the property line.

Section 17.06.570.E.1 separately requires house-side shielding on site-perimeter lighting within 50 feet of a single-family residential line, and E.5 requires trespass and glare onto neighboring Low or Medium Density property to be minimized through shielding, frosted bulbs, peripheral landscaping or fencing, or building placement, with year-round screening required regardless of winter dieback. Section 17.06.570.E.6 goes further for environmentally sensitive land: lighting of critical areas and their buffers is not permitted at all, and only limited pathway safety lighting for trails through them is allowed, subject to the security-lighting standards in Section 17.06.570.H.7.