(https://www.istockphoto.com/illustrations/drawing-of-a-on-off-switch)

Greeting urban dwellers! As the final post on light pollution, I will be sharing what are some solutions that has and can be used to tackle light pollution in urban areas.

There are many on-the-ground measures to tackle light pollution. Instances like installing low glare lighting alternatives in public areas can help to minimise the amount of unnecessary illumination in the night and installing motion sensors such that public lights are only switched on when there are pedestrians/vehicles entering a localised area. By ensuring that unwanted light in areas that do not require them is kept to the minimum, it is a form of method to combat light pollution. Another solution has been annually implemented and perhaps not as recognised as a measure against light pollution: Earth Day. On the last Saturday of March, there is a one-hour where corporations and households are encouraged to turn off their lights as a form demonstrating support and awareness for climate change. Also known as Earth Hour, when lights are switched off for an hour, momentarily there is a reduction of light emitted. However, the effectiveness of this remains questionable as it is not mandated to turn off the lights for an hour and also poses a challenge to continue daily activities in the dark.

However, just using small-scale solutions are not sufficient, policies and education to create awareness and limit the amount of light emitted from urban areas are absolutely necessary if we want to make a change. International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) has been at the forefront creating policies and offering alternatives to cities worldwide to reduce light pollution. Through their own research and efforts, they share the knowledge with governments across the world to protect the darkness in the night sky and promote quality outdoor lighting. Interestingly, as much as having reduced lighting can be beneficial against light pollution, they acknowledge the potential problems like crimes, might surface. Hence, using their data received from tracking and monitoring technologies, they offer sound advice and solutions tailored to the respective municipals. Ultimately, it is difficult to gauge the effectiveness of IDA’s suggestions yet because as much as light remains a staple in our daily lives, these large-scale changes to the urban environment might require decades to prove its feasibility and success.

All in all, let’s do our part and start small if we want to contribute combat efforts: switch off lights when not in use.

You Live in Urban, You Fight for Urban

Your metropollution warrior,

BriChua

References:

Public policy. International Dark-Sky Association. (2020, December 16). Retrieved March 13, 2022, from https://www.darksky.org/our-work/lighting/public-policy/

Rinkesh. (2020, September 8). 21 impressive ways to reduce light pollution. Conserve Energy Future. Retrieved March 13, 2022, from https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/impressive-ways-reduce-light-pollution.php