Do you ever look up at a cloudy night sky and think, “What happened to all the stars?” Light pollution is the easy solution.
Light pollution is not often mentioned when discussing pollution, but it does exist and is an issue. Although there are many other types of light pollution, over-illumination in cities that makes it difficult to view the stars is one of the most common. It eliminates the nursery rhyme’s “star light, star brilliant,” costs us billions of money and confounds nature.
It is time to end this damaging habit by figuring out how to lessen or eliminate light pollution. Read up on this issue as a starting step.
Causes of Light Pollution
Light pollution may have a wide variety of effects and many distinct origins. The spread of excessive light from one property to another is referred to as light pollution. It may also refer to unnecessary lighting on a single property and the day and night illumination of large cities (also known as sky glow).
Ineffective building illumination and lighting surrounding buildings are the main contributors to light pollution. This is the consequence of poor lighting planning, which allows artificial light to beam upward and outward instead of downward where required. Think of the external lighting on most houses and businesses, parking lot lights, neon billboards, and lit-up signboards.
Light Pollution Effects
Using artificial illumination too much has several negative effects. It is mostly produced from burning fossil fuels, and we are all aware of the negative effects of this. In this nation, outdoor illumination emits around 15 million tonnes of CO2 annually. Think about how this affects both climate change and the air we breathe.
The financial expenditures are significant, as well as the enormous environmental implications. Light pollution costs the US economy $2.2 billion annually. Given that the extra illumination has no practical function, this is an extremely high quantity.
You can have trouble sleeping if a bulb is shining through the motel window. Additionally, it could divert migratory birds and other species. And other creatures, like young sea turtles, have evolved to turn toward the stars reflecting off the water, which was once the world’s biggest light source. They now go toward the dazzling lights of the coastal towns to perish from thirst.
How to Prevent Light Pollution
Start with your home if you seek strategies to lessen or even avoid light pollution. Ensure every light fixture you own, indoors and outside, performs a necessary function. Eliminate as many as possible since the greatest way to combat light pollution is to turn off the lights.
Change the fixtures on the others to completely protected, energy-efficient ones. These prevent artificial light from ascending and reaching the sky. Start by focusing on lighting equipment that has the International Dark-Sky Association’s Fixture Seal of Approval. This action would be enough nationwide to eliminate 75% of light pollution.
