Nebraskaland

June2022SinglesForWeb

NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.

Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/1469065

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14 Nebraskaland • June 2022 IN THE FIELD By Eric Fowler SOLAR LIGHTS Any angler who likes fishing at night has figured out how to navigate in the darkness, be it on the water or shore. But you won't find many boaters who wouldn't prefer having a light they could aim for when it's time to head back to the boat ramp. Thanks to technological advances in LED lighting, solar panels and batteries, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission has been able to install lights in several locations around the state where getting them was previously cost prohibitive or simply not possible due to the location. Running an electrical line one-half mile to an improved access on the south side of Conestoga Lake State Recreation Area, for instance, would have cost $22,000 for the wire alone. The solar light that was added during an Aquatic Habitat and Angler Access Program project completed there in 2018 cost $8,500. The lights include an LED bulb, a solar panel and batteries. Advances in LED lighting, which converts 90 percent of the energy it uses into light and use one-fifth of the power to create the same amount of light as the sodium- or mercury- vapor lights they are replacing, have made the combination feasible. This efficiency brings the size and cost of solar panels and batteries required to power them down to a practical level. Additionally, the LEDs last two to four times as long. Solar-powered lights have also been placed on the tips of breakwaters protecting three bays and boat ramps at Lewis and Clark Lake, and the marina bay at Sherman Reservoir. "That's a game changer," said Jordan Katt, motorboat access program coordinator with the Commission's fisheries division. "The rock can shift, so you can't bury wire. That's asking for trouble." At Enders Reservoir, improvements to a low-water boat ramp at the south end of the dam will include a solar light. The issue there isn't the cost of the wire, it is the fact that the location is below the normal water line of the reservoir. Locations of other lights include boat ramps on the Missouri River at Indian Cave State Park, Burchard Wildlife Management Area and Flanagan Lake in Omaha, and at a few other locations in state parks and recreation areas. Without the advancements, and the corresponding drop in price that often comes with new technology, many of these locations would remain in the dark. "It's giving us an opportunity to light it up," Katt said. A solar light illuminates a brick house and parking area on the south side of Conestoga State Recreation Area near Denton in Lancaster County. ERIC FOWLER, NEBRASKALAND

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