The bright hues of hot pink and canary colors shine so vividly that astronauts can capture images of them from outer space. Positioned on top of the largest cluster of greenhouses in North America, these multi-colored lights have not only illuminated the night sky in a section of southwestern Ontario but have also revolutionized the province’s multi-billion-dollar agriculture industry.
In the past ten years, numerous vegetable and cannabis producers have installed thousands of lights within greenhouses in Leamington and Kingsville, Ontario, to facilitate year-round plant growth. The luminous glow coming from Canada’s southernmost region, visible from as far as Michigan, has garnered both admiration and concern, leading local communities to enforce bylaws limiting the brightness of the greenhouses after dark.
Richard Lee, the executive director of the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers, representing 170 members primarily in Essex County, acknowledges that the rapid introduction of technology posed challenges in addressing perceived nuisances. Despite regulations reducing light spillage into the sky, the radiant glow remains visible across the region and even from the International Space Station.
Starr Livingstone, the light pollution abatement officer for the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s Windsor chapter, notes the impact of the luminosity on their observatory. The ongoing visibility of the glow, according to Lee and other involved parties, is influenced by various factors, including exceptions within regulations and lunar cycles.
The surge in greenhouse construction in Kingsville and Leamington, as depicted in satellite images released by NASA, has been substantial since 2015. While the legalization of marijuana in Canada has contributed to this expansion, the adoption of lighting technology for year-round plant cultivation has also played a significant role.
John Norton, the chief administrative officer for the Town of Kingsville, highlights the enhanced profitability and efficiency achieved by growers through the use of technology, enabling them to produce higher yields compared to open-field farming. The demand for fresh produce, especially during the disruptions caused by COVID-19, has further propelled greenhouse expansion to ensure food security and economic growth.
Despite the economic benefits, the swift adoption of grow light technology has faced criticism due to ecological concerns in the region, which hosts unique Carolinian ecosystems and serves as a significant migratory route for birds and monarch butterflies. Consequently, both Kingsville and Leamington have implemented bylaws in recent years to address the escalating light pollution from the greenhouses.
These regulations include directives for growers to install light-blocking curtains and limit light emissions during specific hours. While compliance with these bylaws has been a point of contention, efforts are being made to balance the need for mitigating light pollution with the economic benefits and food security provided by the greenhouse industry.
