GREEN NEWS & VIEWS
Combating Light Pollution, Preserving Dark Skies
policymakers at the earliest stages of policy formation. Importantly, they also encourage citizens to get actively involved with protecting the night sky in their own towns (check out their guide on Lighting Or- dinances , which includes a template for a Model Lighting Ordinance, for example). As if DarkSky’s vast resource library wasn’t enough, they also cer - tify and help conserve starry sky parks, communities and other places around the world with their Dark Sky Places program . Some of the more well-known places include Big Bend National Park in Texas, Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah and the community of Flagstaff, Arizona. These locations have protections in place for dark skies, which minimize light pollution and trespass. For example, the Lighting Or - dinance for Flagstaff specifies type of lamps preferred (Low-Pressure Sodium [LPS] or narrow-spectrum amber LED), along with their al - lowed level of light output. Fully shielded lamps for outdoor lighting are required in almost all cases. Certified sites also engage in public outreach and education, and monitor local light pollution levels.
BY AURORA B.
When you sit outside at night or in the wee hours of the morning, what do you expect to see? In ancient times, priest-shamans would observe the night sky, which they saw as a key to understanding our past, present and future. The ancient Maya tracked the movement of Xibalba Be , the Mayan “Dark Road” aka The Dark Rift (or Great Rift) that appears to the eye as a dark streak through the Milky Way, which they saw as the en - trance to the Underworld. These days, we’d be lucky if we saw half of what Ptolemy observed when he named his original famous 48 con - stellations. Light Pollution is defined by the National Geographic Society as “the excessive or inappropriate use of outdoor artificial light, affecting human health, wildlife behavior, and our ability to observe stars and other celestial objects”. Just like air or water pollution, “light pollu- tion” describes conditions that are inhospitable to life as we know it. Our modern world is absolutely flooded with artificial light, whether it be from streetlights, sports arenas, shopping centers, or overly-lit individual properties, you name it. And with modern Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs) oftentimes being very bright and blue-enriched, which flicker and emit light in specific directions instead of evenly dispersing, it’s not a far stretch of the imagination to say that life systems are impacted by this. Such drastic changes to our environment in the form of lighting has been blamed as the primary reason why we have migrating birds flying into skyscrapers, baby tur - tles navigating inland instead of out to sea, and molluscs that aren’t feeding for as long as in the past due to the way these new lights pen- etrate water. While there is some evidence in scientific literature of the effects these bright lights have on wildlife, little has been confirmed about their effects on humans. However, initial research on artificial light at night (ALAN) has shown worrying effects, such as increased risk of breast and prostate cancer and circadian rhythm/sleep-wake cycle disruption. (The NIH National Library of Medicine has several arti- cles available online on ALAN-related research.) If someone’s sleep is disturbed, they’re vulnerable to a whole host of other mental and physical issues. We are also often told the reason for having such bright lights is that it’s for security purposes. But, brighter is not always better. When considering that bright lights create high contrast shadows, thereby providing safety to potential perpetrators as a place to hide, it might be time to reconsider that notion. Introducing DarkSky Currently, there are only a handful of organizations tackling the issue of light pollution. Of those, DarkSky International (recently re - branded, and formerly called the International Dark-Sky Association) is perhaps the most well-known (https://darksky.org/). They aim to educate on the fact that light pollution exists, and advocate for com- mon-sense policies that protect human health, wildlife and the envi- ronment. Turning the lights off, guidance for buying and installing lighting that has less impact on the environment, and how to talk to light-loving neighbors when their floodlights trespass into your bed - room windows at night are just some of the every-day tips they pro- mote that anyone anywhere can do. DarkSky not only develops these resources for people at an individ - ual-level, but they lead efforts to set policies that reduce light pollution around the world. They track policy developments and engage with
As of January 2023, there were 201 certified Dark Sky Places across 6 continents. The two closest to us in the DMV are the Cherry Springs State Park in Pennsylvania, and Mayland Earth to Sky Park & Bare Dark Sky Observatory in North Carolina. But some exciting local news! Our very own Turner Farm in Great Falls, Virginia, may in fu- ture be designated as a “DarkSky site.” Local Advocacy Simply being aware that light pollution is an issue is the first step. From there, you can adjust your lighting at home and then widen your radius, if you’re called to do so. As an example, I found that my local Lighting Ordinance in Fairfax City allowed for outrageously-high out- put from a single light source — up to 200,000 lumens or 2 million candela are allowed! For comparison, High-Intensity Discharge (HID) lamps, like those used at sports stadiums, can emit somewhere in the range of 15,000 lumens per lamp, and Flagstaff limits many lamps to 10,000 lumens. So there seemed to be a disconnect between my local Ordinance and what’s reasonable in terms of lighting. I presented my findings at the local Planning Commission meeting, and the ordinance is now being reviewed. There is work to be done here, but I am confident it can and will be done. Our actions today affect the world of tomorrow. If just one less person turns on their floodlights tonight after seeing this article, just imagine what we can do once more people tune in. Ms. Aurora B. has been involved with DarkSky as an Advocate, and is a member of the Soft Lights Foundation. Disclaimer: This article is not affiliated or endorsed by DarkSky International. Benefiting from the absence of light pollution, Cherry Springs State Park in Coudersport, PA, is one of the closest DarkSky certified sites to the DMV. Photo source: cherryspringsstatepark.com/
PATHWAYS—Winter 23—15
Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker