Post on 28-Aug-2014
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Why do we tolerate bad lighting?
Written and researched by Marc Sandberg, Dark Sky Georgia
What is Light Pollution1) Glare – Obtrusive and inappropriately applied outdoor
lighting generates glare. Glare is any light that is in your direct vision (why do most indoor lights have shades on them?).
2) Light Trespass – Light from a neighbor, business or roadway that spills onto your property, without your consent.
3) Energy Waste – Light shining outward and upward into the sky is wasted. This waste is estimated at costing Six Billion Dollars annually.
4) Environment – Lights at night confuse and harm animals and birds, and distresses trees.
5) Urban Sky Glow – This is what you see when you look at a city from a distance, a dome of light covering a large area of the sky and blocking your view of the stars.
The Villains
Growing pot in the living room?
Drive Thru Operating Room?
Acorn in the trees?
What are the problem indicators?Sky GlowFacts:• Does your night sky look like the photo on the left or the
photo on the right?• Skyglow is not an indication of progress. It only indicates poor
administration.
Night of Blackout – 60 second exposure Night after Blackout – 30 second exposure
Glare on Streets
Street Lights – Use Full Cutoff
We Need Security Lights, Don’t We? What are you lighting up?
Many overly bright security lights obscure more than they reveal.
Girl moved 4 feet to stand next to pole
Glare and Security What are you lighting up?
Many overly bright security lights obscure more than they reveal.
Same picture taken with flash
US National Institute of Justice states: ". We can have very little confidence that improved lighting prevents crime".
Glare - Good lighting can improve safety!
Facts:• Obtrusive outdoor lighting often happens.
Lighting is only good when glare is controlled and the source is discrete.
Glare - Good lighting can improve safety! - Floodlights
Aim the Floodlights Down!
Light TrespassFacts: The problem of trespass occurs in nearly
every community!
• Lighting only provides benefits to society when the light is controlled and the source of illumination is discrete.
Main factors influencing criminals' decision
Main situational factors influencing decision to offendDeterrents rated with high Percentage rating• Presence of alarms outside property 84%• Belief that house is occupied 84%• Presence of camera nearby property 82%• Apparent strength of doors/window locks 55%
p u b l i c a t i o n s . rd s @ h o m e o ff i c e . g s i . g o v. u k
Crime
How lighting can aid crime• Most crime, especially domestic break-ins, occur in
daylight, proving that light can aid criminals. • Over-powered lights, shining outwards, can hide criminal
activity with glare, providing ideal cover for a burglar at night by blinding potential witnesses
• Lighting can help criminals survey an area and minimize any risk, helping them to be quick and quiet.
• Lighting can highlight potential targets, "easy pickings", security lapses and escape routes
• Motion activated floodlights are so frequently triggered that they are ignored by neighbors
Does Lighting Deter Crime?
• Des Moines Register newspaper, USA: Darkened streetlights fail to raise crime rate. "A money-saving decision to turn off thousands of Des Moines street- lights met with dire predictions from critics who warned that darkened streets would create a haven for crime. Statistics tell a different story. The first four months of 2004 saw a 3.5 percent drop in vandalism, burglary and robbery..."
EnvironmentThe light confuses the tree as to the season.
The foliage of trees grown in continuous lighting may belarger in size and more susceptible to air pollution andwater stress during the growing season because thestomatal pores in leaves remain open for longer periods.
Environment
Tens of millions of migrating birds die every year due to confusion from
overlighting - Crash into buildings, towers- Greater problem during migration season
Air Pollution
• The coal burned to make electricity for lights also creates air pollution– One 150W HPS street light per annum
• Creates 1.24 tons of CO2• 19 lbs. of SO2• 11 lbs. of NO• 22 grams of Mercury (1 gram of mercury in a 25
acre lake renders fish unsafe for human consumption)
Air Pollution
Sandy Springs – recently put in good lighting but did not remove the old lighting- 30 superfluous 150W lights
- 37.3 tons of CO2- 565 lbs of SO2- 339 lbs of NO- 1.4 lbs of Mercury
Why do anything?You can’t be bothered? Left unaddressed the waste
problem gets significantly worse!• Notice the progression over 7 years (1992-1999). The
culprit is unshielded lighting caused by lack of education and lack of fair and comprehensive regulations. The annual cost (~$6B) to erase the stars from the night sky provides no benefit to us:
DSMP - 1999
What has been done locally?
• Several Georgia counties have adopted a Dark Sky Ordinance (Fulton, Cherokee) with more on the way
• Example of Poor Lighting – new Acorn Luminaires in Chastain Park
• Examples of Good Lighting – – Atlantic Station, all FCO’s– Sandy Springs Business District, all FCO’s
Examples• San Diego – changed street lights to Low Density Sodium
(LDS) lights, which are most cost efficient lights available – Saves $3M per year
• Des Moines – turned off 39% of its streetlights – no increase in crime
• Calgary - changed street lights to LDS lights- Savings of $3M per year and a reduction of 17 kilotons of carbon-dioxide emissions per year
• Los Angeles – the sky over LA is actually darker than it was 15 years ago due to modernized street lamps (80% full cutoff)
• Other cities with significant full cutoff lighting – Minneapolis, Fort Worth, Dallas
Conclusions?Facts: "Light Pollution" - The Only Pollution that Costs
More to Perpetuate than to Eliminate!• With improved efficiencies in lighting and design, the
cost of better lighting is cheaper than the status quo.
• Comprehensive laws can control the waste and save precious resources (less oil and less air pollution).
• Light Pollution reform can and does begin right in your own back yard.
• Light Pollution grows from a combination of apathy and a lack of education. It needs a rapid and effective cure and it needs it right now before the stars disappear completely.
What are your rewards to fix it?We can have the light we need without the waste!
• Save money and improve profit margins with lower operating costs.
• Consume less fossil fuels (84% of electricity production) reducing additional negative impacts from soil, water, and air pollution caused by soot and ash.
• Safer roads for drivers and pedestrians.• Reduce manmade greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.• Everyone gets a free Milky Way with each clear night
simply by stepping outside and looking up after dark!
IT CAN BE DONE!• Consider the eye! If lights are eye friendly they
will usually be sky friendly. • Prohibit the of sight of direct glare and light
trespass beyond property lines.• Require area lighting in parking lots and common
areas to be shielded.• Require commercial lighting to be extinguished
after normal business hours.