Sea turtle lighting ordinance in Brevard County, Florida

The county's lighting rules in Chapter 46, Article III are written for the marine turtles nesting along the unincorporated beaches of Brevard County (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

Section 46-93 states the purpose: to protect the threatened and endangered marine turtles nesting on the unincorporated Brevard County shoreline by safeguarding nesting females and hatchlings from artificial light (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article). The history notes trace the current text to Ord. No. 93-15, adopted June 22, 1993, carried over from section 11-17.1 of the 1979 code. Its definition of a person reaches beyond homeowners: any individual, firm, corporation or trust, and any unit of federal, state, county or municipal government.

FWC's statewide ordinance list dates Brevard County's article to 1985, 1990 and 1993 and lists separate ordinances, each with its own code enforcement contact, for the beach cities from Cape Canaveral to Melbourne Beach (FWC Sea Turtle Protection Ordinances list). The Space Coast sea turtle nesting guide tabulates those city ordinances.

A Brevard County beachfront light breaks the rule when it lights the beach directly, indirectly or cumulatively, terms Section 46-91 defines from the viewpoint of someone standing on the sand (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

Section 46-91 defines nesting season as May 1 through October 31 (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article), while the county's wildlife page gives March 1 to October 31 (Brevard County Local Animals and Wildlife).

Under Section 46-91, remodeling of an existing Brevard County beachfront structure counts as new development when it includes alteration of exterior lighting, and Section 46-94 carries the new development standards (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

Under Section 46-94, a new or remodeled Brevard County beachfront building must keep vehicle, security and construction light off the beach and pass a county night survey before occupancy (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

Several of the Section 46-94 standards are about site design rather than fixtures. Parking areas and roadways, paved or unpaved, must be designed and located so headlights do not light the beach directly or indirectly, and vehicle, parking and roadway lighting is to be shielded with ground-level barriers when possible (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article). Those barriers may not interfere with turtle nesting or hatchling emergence or damage the beach and dune system. Security lighting is limited to the minimum number and configuration needed, and the code prefers motion detector switches that keep lights off until approached.

During nesting season, temporary construction lighting on a Brevard County beachfront job is held to the minimum necessary, and its illumination may not spread beyond the boundary of the property being developed (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article). For high-intensity uses such as lighted parking areas and roadways, the code states a preference for shielded low pressure sodium vapor lamps.

The certificate of occupancy step is spelled out. After construction, the county inspector conducts a site inspection that includes a night survey with all beachfront lighting turned on, then reports in writing the date and time, the extent of compliance, any areas of noncompliance and any remedial action (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article). Where remedial action is needed, the inspector notifies the owner or developer and schedules a follow-up inspection.

Section 46-95 tells owners of existing Brevard County beachfront buildings to reposition, modify or remove fixtures until no light source is visible from the beach and nothing seaward of the frontal dune is lit (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

The county code's menu of fixes for older Brevard County buildings includes several that go past bulb swaps (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article). Fixtures with translucent coverings are to be replaced with ones carrying opaque shields covering an arc of at least 180 degrees on the seaward side. Nondirectional fixtures give way to directional fixtures pointing down and away from the beach, and pole lamps to low profile, low level luminaries. Any fixture that cannot be brought into compliance is to be permanently removed or disabled, and the code also lists extinguishing a fixture after 9:00 p.m. from May 1 to October 31 among the measures.

FWC's current retrofit guidance names different hardware. Where the county text points to low pressure sodium and yellow bug bulbs, FWC's advice calls for the lowest wattage amber, orange or red LED that still gives adequate light (FWC Sea Turtles and Lights). FWC also says lights needed for safety or security should not simply be switched off but modified, and that utility pole lights on an owner's property can be turned off by the power company at the owner's request. On glass, FWC cites a tint meeting 45% or less inside to outside transmittance, the same 45 percent figure the Brevard County code uses to define tinted glass, and adds that darker tints are recommended, with tints as low as 15% used successfully.

Yes: Section 46-96 applies the ordinance to publicly owned lighting, including street lights and the lights at Brevard County parks and public beach access areas (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

Street lights in unincorporated Brevard County must be placed so the bulk of their light travels away from the beach, and must carry shades or shields that prevent backlighting and keep them out of view from the sand (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article). Lights at parks or other public beach access points must be shielded or shaded, or not used at all, during nesting season.

State law directs the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to adopt by rule guidelines for local government regulations, such as Brevard County's, that control beachfront lighting (Section 161.163, Florida Statutes).

Section 161.163 requires the department to designate by rule the coastal areas used, or likely to be used, by sea turtles for nesting, and to adopt guidelines for local government regulations that control beachfront lighting to protect hatchlings (Section 161.163, Florida Statutes). The Brevard County article's footnote lists F.S. §§ 161.161(1)(i) and 163.163 as its state law reference for sea turtle protection (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

Those guidelines sit in Chapter 62B-55 of the Florida Administrative Code, the Model Lighting Ordinance for Marine Turtle Protection, a state rule separate from Chapter 46 of the Brevard County Code. The rule list shows the model standards for new beachfront lighting, for existing beachfront lighting and for enforcement and penalties as repealed effective December 15, 2020, and the definitions and the general guidance to local governments with that same effective date (Florida Administrative Code Chapter 62B-55). Rule 62B-55.004, amended December 15, 2020, is administered by the department's Division of Beaches and Coastal Systems and references The State of Florida Model Lighting Ordinance for Sea Turtle Protection, and the 2020 rulemaking notice says the changes were meant to update non-mandatory guidelines and reflect improvements in lighting technology (Rule 62B-55.004, F.A.C.).

State permits bring the same standards to Brevard County beachfront projects from another direction: FWC says its lighting guidelines are designed for owners who must avoid and minimize lighting impacts as part of state programs such as Coastal Construction Control Line permits and Environmental Resource Permits (FWC Sea Turtles and Lights). Its three golden rules are to keep fixtures low, use only long wavelength light of 560 nm or greater, and keep fixtures fully shielded.

County code enforcement responds to citizen complaints (Brevard County Code Enforcement FAQ), and a conviction under the article can bring a fine of up to $500.00, up to six months in county jail, or both (Brevard County Code, Marine Turtle Protection article).

Brevard County's Code Enforcement FAQ says the Board of County Commissioners has directed code enforcement to respond only to citizen complaints at specific addresses or locations, except for issues of health and safety (Brevard County Code Enforcement FAQ). FWC's ordinance list gives a code enforcement contact line for unincorporated Brevard County at (321) 350-8294, and a separate line marked incorporated, (321) 609-7333 (FWC Sea Turtle Protection Ordinances list).

An owner who receives notice that lights are visible from the beach can start with FWC's checklist for identifying the problem lights, which walks through safety lights, balcony lights, utility pole lights, parking lot pole lights, pool lights, decorative lights and interior lights (FWC Sea Turtles and Lights). The county's own request is simpler: during the season it asks that lights on houses and businesses near the beach be turned off so mothers and hatchlings are not disoriented (Brevard County Local Animals and Wildlife).

Last verified: October 21, 2026, by reading Secs. 46-91 to 46-96 of the Brevard County Code on Municode, the county wildlife and code enforcement pages, FWC's lighting guidelines and ordinance list, Section 161.163 and the Chapter 62B-55 rule pages.