Abstract
Outdoor lighting is becoming increasingly widespread, and residents are suffering from serious light pollution as a result. Residents’ awareness of their rights to protection has gradually increased. However, due to the sometimes-inaccessible nature of residential vertical light incidence intensity data and the high cost of obtaining specific measurements, there is no appropriate hierarchic compensation for residents suffering from different degrees of light pollution. It is therefore important to measure light pollution levels and their damage at the neighborhood scale to provide residents with basic materials for proper protection and to create more politically-suitable solutions. This article presents a light pollution assessment method that is easy to perform, is low-cost and has a short data-processing cycle. This method can be used to monitor residential zone light pollution in other cities. We chose three open areas to test the spatial variation pattern of light intensity. The results are in accordance with spatial interpolation patterns and can be fit, with high precision, using the inverse distance weighted interpolation (IDW) method. This approach can also be used in three dimensions to quantitatively evaluate the distribution of light intensity. We use a mixed-use zone in Beijing known as The Place as our case study area. The vertical illumination at the windows of residential buildings ranges from 2 lux to 23 lux; the illumination in some areas is far higher than the value recommended by CIE. Such severe light pollution can seriously interfere with people's daily lives and has a serious influence on their rest and health. The results of this survey will serve as an important database to assess whether the planning of night-time lighting is scientific, and it will help protect the rights of residents and establish distinguished compensation mechanisms for light pollution.
Highlights
Outdoor lighting is an indispensable element of modern civilized societies, and the expanding use of light at night is due to the fact that humans are trying to extend the duration of their daily activities
In the United States, approximately 6% of the electricity produced is used for outdoor lighting, and an estimated 30% of this is wasted as light pollution [10]
Using GIS spatial analysis technology, this study presents a light pollution assessment method of residential zones that can sometimes be inaccessible that is easy to perform, is low-cost, and has short data-processing cycle and some advice are put forward
Summary
Outdoor lighting is an indispensable element of modern civilized societies, and the expanding use of light at night is due to the fact that humans are trying to extend the duration of their daily activities. Using GIS spatial analysis technology, this study presents a light pollution assessment method of residential zones that can sometimes be inaccessible that is easy to perform, is low-cost, and has short data-processing cycle and some advice are put forward. We hope this can provide a reference for residents wanting to avoid light pollution, for relevant departments wanting to formulate management measures and for metropolises wanting to reduce their light pollution
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
