Reduction Of Light Pollution Research Articles

A Legal Framework for Energy-Conscious Urban Planning in Poland and Germany

This work seeks to answer the question as to whether the legal orders of Poland and Germany provide an effective framework for energy-efficient and climate-resilient urban space management. To this end, it verifies what similarities and differences exist between certain areas and whether they need reform. The starting point is the belief that legal instruments for environmentally friendly space management are a cross-border issue. Comparative studies are important because effective environmental protection knows no borders, and a lower level of protection in one country or geographic region can affect neighbouring countries and regions. The analysis of legal norms affecting such issues as passive energy construction; prevention of soil sealing and adequate ventilation; reduction of CO2 emissions; promotion of green areas; proper water management; reduction of so-called “grey energy” associated with new construction; the compact city; and a reduction of light pollution has enabled us to synthesise findings into specific conclusions and to propose postulates and directions for further research. However, this does not change the overall assessment that the legal systems of Poland and Germany enable environmentally friendly space management at a similar level, while at the same time, certain additions to the regulations and a further discussion of possible improvements are most welcome and needed.

Inbound arrivals: using weather surveillance radar to quantify the diurnal timing of spring trans‐Gulf bird migration

More than two billion birds migrate through the Gulf of Mexico each spring en route to breeding grounds in the USA and Canada. This region has a long history of complex natural and anthropogenic environments as the northern Gulf coast provides the first possible stopover habitats for migrants making nonstop trans‐Gulf crossings during spring migration. However, intense anthropogenic activity in the region, which is expanding rapidly at present, makes migrants vulnerable to a multitude of obstacles and increasingly fragments and alters these habitats. Understanding the timing of migrants' overwater arrivals has biological value for expanding our understanding of migration ecology relative to decision‐making for nonstop flights, and is imperative for advancing conservation of this critical region through the identification of key times in which to direct conservation actions (e.g. temporary halting of wind turbines, reduction of light pollution). We explored 10 years of weather surveillance radar data from five sites along the northern Gulf of Mexico coast to quantify the daily timing and intensity of arriving trans‐Gulf migrants. On a daily scale, we found that migrant intensity peaked an average of nine hours after local sunrise, occurring earliest at easternmost sites. On a seasonal level, the greatest number of arrivals occurred between late April and early May, with peak intensity occurring latest at westernmost sites. Overall intensity of migration across all 10 years of data was greatest at the westernmost sites and decreased moving farther to the east. These findings emphasize the differential spatial and temporal patterns of use of the Gulf of Mexico region by migrating birds, information that is essential for improving our understanding of the ecology of trans‐Gulf migration and for supporting data‐driven approaches to conservation actions for the migratory birds passing through this critical region.

Models for Measuring Light Pollution Risk

With the development of social economy, light pollution becomes more serious. In order to deal with double carbon policy and promote sustainable development of green economy, the reduction of light pollution has become an important task in today's society. This paper established a measurement model for evaluating the degree of light pollution (Model I) by integrating a large amount of data and principal component analysis, and applied it to four different types of areas. Combined with clustering algorithm, three strategies to solve the problem of light pollution were proposed (Model II), and the effect of each strategy on the prevention and control of light pollution was discussed. Finally, this paper applies these three measures to two different areas of Beijing and New York to get the most effective intervention strategies.

AUTOMATIC STREET LIGHT CONTROL AND MONITORING SYSTEM

Street lighting is one of the important parts of a city’s infrastructure where the main function is to illuminate the city’s streets during dark hours of the day. Previously, the number of streets in the town and city were less. So, the street lamps were relatively simple but with the development of urbanization, the number of streets increased rapidly with high traffic density. There are several factors needed to be considered in order to design a good street lighting system such as night-time safety for community members and road users, provide public lighting at low cost and the reduction of light pollution. Initially, the street lamps were controlled manually where a control switch is set in each of the street lamps. It is called first generation of the original street light. After that, another method that was been used was optical control method. This method uses high pressure sodium lamp in their system. It can be seen that this method is widely used in the country nowadays. This method operates by setting up an optical control circuit. It lights up automatically at dusk and turns off automatically after dawn in the morning. The system utilizes the latest technology for the sources of light as LED Lamps instead of generally used street lamps such as High Pressure Sodium Lamps, etc. The LED technology is preferred as it offers several advantages over other traditional technologies. The application is designed in such a way that we place light sensors in all street light circuits, which is responsible to switch on and off automatically. Once the lights are switched on current sensors placed at every street light circuits are responsible to report problem status to the centralized system with help of GSM module attached with the circuit The system described can effectively save energy by reducing the power consumption as per requirement. Since this is a sensor based system, so it is self-controlled and automated system. The system is also flexible for any modification or further expansion such as interfacing of new sensors, connecting surveillance camera for the security purpose, etc. This project of Smart Street Light System is a cost effective, practical, eco-friendly and the safest way to save energy.

Air pollution mitigation can reduce the brightness of the night sky in and near cities

Light pollution is a novel environmental problem whose extent and severity are rapidly increasing. Among other concerns, it threatens global biodiversity, nocturnal animal migration, and the integrity of the ground-based astronomy research enterprise. The most familiar manifestation of light pollution is skyglow, the result of the interplay of outdoor artificial light at night (ALAN) and atmospheric scattering that obscures views of naturally dark night skies. Interventions to reduce night sky brightness (NSB) involving the adoption of modern lighting technologies are expected to yield the greatest positive environmental consequences, but other aspects of the problem have not been fully explored as bases for public policies aimed at reducing light pollution. Here we show that reducing air pollution, specifically aerosols, decreases NSB by tens of percent at relatively small distances from light sources. Cleaner city air lowers aerosol optical depth and darkens night skies, particularly in directions toward light sources, due to relatively short path lengths traversed by photons from source to observer. A field experiment demonstrating the expected changes when transitioning from conditions of elevated turbidity to cleaner air validated our hypothesis. Our results suggest new policy actions to augment and enhance existing light pollution reduction techniques targeting lighting technology and design.

Living Environmental Laboratory for Lighting: Reduction of Light Pollution at Hungarian Settlements

The International Dark Sky Association has a flight of rules for public lighting in dark sky parks. In Hungary, many settlements still illuminate with compact fluorescent lights and sodium lamps, that do not fulfill these rules. In our research project, financed by a grant of the European Union, we established a system of Living Environmental Laboratory for Lighting at two settlements in dark sky parks in Hungary. As the first step, the public lighting system was reconstructed, so that it satisfied the rules of IDA. We designed new LED luminaires with optimal illumination and optical properties to provide the necessary luminous intensity and reduce light pollution at the same time. The new system has a two-step illumination profile: (i) Early night, after sunset, when the traffic is still high, warm white LEDs are applied to ensure sufficient lighting coming to the roads and pavements with a wide beam of light. (ii) Late night, when the traffic is low, the illumination switches to amber LEDs that have a narrower light beam to minimize light pollution and provide sufficient visibility. This approach can be an optimal illumination construction to reduce the light pollution of public lighting at night.

Observing the Impact of WWF Earth Hour on Urban Light Pollution: A Case Study in Berlin 2018 Using Differential Photometry

Earth Hour is one of the most successful coordinated mass efforts worldwide to raise awareness of environmental issues, with excessive energy consumption being one driver of climate change. The campaign, first organized by the World Wildlife Fund in Australia in 2007, has grown across borders and cultures and was celebrated in 188 countries in 2018. It calls for voluntarily reduction of electricity consumption for a single hour of one day each year. Switching off non-essential electric lights is a central theme and resulted in 17,900 landmarks going dark in 2018. This switch-off of lights during Earth Hour also leads to reduction of light pollution for this specific period. In principle, Earth Hour allows the study of light pollution and the linkage to electricity consumption of lighting. However, quantitative analysis of the impact of Earth Hour on light pollution (and electricity consumption) are sparse, with only a few studies published showing no clear impact or the reverse, suffering from residual twilight and unstable weather conditions. In this work, light pollution measurements during Earth Hour 2018 in an urban park (Tiergarten) in Berlin, Germany, are reported. A novel light measurement method using differential photometry with calibrated digital cameras enables tracking of the switching off and switching back on of the lights of Berlin’s iconic Brandenburg Gate and the buildings of Potsdamer Platz adjacent to the park. Light pollution reduction during the event was measurable, despite the presence of moonlight. Strategies for future work on light pollution using such events are discussed.

Reducing the light pollution in settlement units areas – comparative case studies

Dark-sky areas are a form of night landscape protection and reduction of light pollution (LP), but also a new direction of inhabited and urban areas development. Yet still the lack of social awareness of artificial light at night (ALAN) exposure issues is widespread. While the technical aspects of outdoor lighting modernization used for reduction are recognized and continuously elaborated, there is no specific scheme of the dark sky communities formation processes. In contrast to isolated areas of dark-sky protection, they are a challenge due to the accumulation of various functions and interests or spatial conflicts. The article is an attempt to determine how and why particular programs work or fail to work on the examples of the Polish village of Sopotnia Wielka and the Scottish town of Moffat. It seems that the legal factors are decisive, but other important aspects like social or planning come to the fore.

The urban lighting in the rehabilitation of the minor historical centre. The design scenarios for the architectural valorisation and the energy efficiency improvement of the urban environment

<p>In the last decades, the topic of lighting of the historical minor centres is taking a prominent role in the cultural debate on the urban recovery interventions, because of the development of a greater awareness of the regenerative potential role that a careful planning system of urban lighting can take in this context.</p><p>The latter, which had a purely functional role in the past, has recently taken a figurative and emotional role, associated with the vision of the urban light scene during the night and its valorization.</p><p>The study of light, therefore, has inevitably turned into an instrument of knowledge and critical interpretation of the urban spaces, aimed both to functional recovery of the lighting network technology, and the regeneration of the urban image and its night scenes.</p><p>The needs that this sector should satisfy are multiple and, sometimes, conflicting: the need for road safety, the reduction of light pollution, the need for energy and cost savings.</p><p>The research aims to define an operative methodology to deal with the light planning in complex contexts as the minor historical centers, in which the concept of transformation of the urban scene clashes directly with the concept of preserving the identity features of the places and its constructive values and materials.</p><p>Among the goals, there is therefore the aim of highlighting the main gaps in the network, due both to plant engineering reasons and to the obsolescence of the existing lighting fixtures.</p><p>We operatively work in the urban voids system field, as spaces that characterize the urban scene. Through the knowledge of their dominant features it is possible to preserve their identity and, at the same time, enhance their singularity, with a suitable lighting project, which requires the study of materials, colors and consumption.</p><p>The purpose is to promote an urban development, able to produce positive economic, social and cultural effects, oriented to improve the quality of life, as well as to value the architectural and environmental heritage giving importance to energy and economic saving.</p>

Evaluation of LEED Requirements for Site Properties in Developing Country-Specific Certification

Construction activities are strongly affected by the properties of the site. Site conditions direct the investment decision and development approach. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the most widely used certification system around the world, covers site properties with two sections, i.e., Location and Transportation, and Sustainable Sites. These two sections in LEED v4 NC add up to 42 points, which corresponds to approximately 33.3% of the total points that a building can receive. Issues such as neighborhood development location, sensitive land protection, high priority site, surrounding density and diverse uses, access to quality transit, bicycle facilities, reduced parking footprint, and green vehicles that are treated in the Location and Transportation section have different priorities and implications in developing countries. Similarly, issues such as pollution prevention, site assessment, site development - protect or restore habitat, open space, rainwater management, heat island reduction, and light pollution reduction that are treated in the Sustainable Sites section are based largely on local practices and standards, and therefore offer different challenges. In this study, these two sections of LEED v4 NC are assessed relative to practices in developing countries. A comparative review of the topics is performed by means of a thorough literature survey. It is expected that the outcome of the study will provide guidance to professionals in selected developing countries towards improvement of the existing state and practices.

Fatal attraction of short-tailed shearwaters to artificial lights.

Light pollution is increasing around the world and altering natural nightscapes with potential ecological and evolutionary consequences. A severe ecological perturbation caused by artificial lights is mass mortalities of organisms, including seabird fledglings that are attracted to lights at night on their first flights to the sea. Here, we report on the number of fledging short-tailed shearwaters Ardenna tenuirostris found grounded in evening and morning rescue patrols conducted at Phillip Island, Australia, during a 15-year period (1999–2013). We assessed factors affecting numbers of grounded birds and mortality including date, moon phase, wind direction and speed, number of visitors and holiday periods. We also tested experimentally if birds were attracted to lights by turning the lights off on a section of the road. Of 8871 fledglings found, 39% were dead or dying. This mortality rate was 4–8 times higher than reported elsewhere for other shearwater species, probably because searching for fledglings was part of our systematic rescue effort rather than the opportunistic rescue used elsewhere. Thus, it suggests that light-induced mortality of seabirds is usually underestimated. We rescued more birds (dead and alive) in peak fledging, moonless and windy nights. Mortality increased through the fledging period, in the mornings and with increased traffic on holiday periods. Turning the road lights off decreased the number of grounded birds (dead and alive). While moon, wind and time are uncontrolled natural constraints, we demonstrated that reduction of light pollution and better traffic management can mitigate artificial light-induced mortality.

LED램프와 메탈램프가 도로조명환경에 미치는 특성 비교평가

The problems of light pollution first became an issue in the 1970s when astronomers identified the degradation of the night sky due to the increase in lighting associated with development and growth. As more impacts to the environment by lighting have been identified, many attempts have been made for reducing light pollutions. To prevent light pollution and increase energy efficiency, Seoul Metropolitan Government(SMG) replaced metal halide road lighting to LED luminaire in four arterial highway in Seoul. The present study compared the lighting characteristics of metal halide and LED luminaire in terms of Korea Standard for road lighting(KS A 3701) and BUG rating from Illuminating Engineering Society of North America(IESNA). The results showed that LED luminaire increased road surface luminance up to 2 times in average compared to the metal halide environment. Also, LED luminaire reduced the glare value by 2 times and luminous flux over 50% than the metal halide luminaire. In comparison with the BUG ratings, LED luminaire rated 1 degree lower for the backlight ratings and 3-4 degrees lower for the uplight ratings. The measured values testified that the LED luminaire is effective for roadway lighting and light pollution reduction.

Lose Sleep, Gain Weight: Another Piece of the Obesity Puzzle

It’s 11 p.m., and you sit in front of a glowing computer screen, writing e-mails and eating a sandwich. You’ll work until after midnight, when you’ll fall asleep in front of the light and blare of a TV before rising again at 6 a.m. What’s wrong with this picture? Because of modern conveniences and pressures, many of us keep our bodies exposed to light, food, and activity at times when our organs and cells expect dark, quiet, and sleep. In epidemiologic studies, shorter sleep has been correlated with incidence of obesity, hypertension, and other metabolic disorders. Experimental sleep studies find a similar connection. Increasingly, studies of the possible mechanisms behind these associations suggest that lack of sleep is part of a bigger problem with the 24/7 lifestyle many people today lead. Increasingly, scientists are finding that many physiologic activities related to metabolism don’t happen continuously but oscillate on a regular schedule. Studies in mice as well as humans suggest that when our internal clock is disrupted, it may throw off many bodily functions, especially metabolism. Many environmental factors have been shown to contribute to circadian disruption. Noise in busy hospitals, street noise, and airport noise have all been reported to disrupt sleep or reduce its quality. Research in animals and humans shows that exposure to light during early biological night resets the main circadian clock by producing a phase delay (the biological urge to go to sleep and wake up later than usual), and exposure during late biological night results in a phase advance (going to sleep and waking up earlier than usual). We live in a world where air passengers can see the glow of major cities 200 miles away. So the fact that human circadian systems appear sensitive even to low-level artificial light exposure raises significant concerns for the health effects of our electrified modern society. For instance, exposure to a few hours of ordinary room light of about 100 lux brightness (which most people get every night before they go to bed) can significantly reset the human circadian pacemaker, Jamie Zeitzer and colleagues reported in the September 2005 American Journal of Physiology—Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology. However, it’s not certain what the effects of very brief light exposures may be. The duration of light exposure needed to cause shifts hasn’t been well studied, according to a review by Charles Czeisler and Joshua Gooley in volume 27 (2007) of Cold Spring Harbor Symposia on Quantitative Biology. [For more information about the health effects of too much artificial light, see “Missing the Dark: Health Effects of Light Pollution,” EHP 117:A20–A27 (2009).] Epidemiologic studies suggest that lack of sleep or sleeping on an altered schedule is an independent risk factor for gaining weight. But it’s still not certain whether short sleep actually causes obesity and its associated health effects. For instance, some scientists have suggested that the association between obesity and lack of sleep may be due to the fact that people who are obese may be more likely to have a sleep disorder such as sleep apnea, or that the reported lack of sleep is a symptom of psychosocial stress. But a body of studies have shown a connection between short sleep and obesity, other health effects associated with obesity, and increased appetite or food intake.

Japanese Government Official Guideline for Reduction of Light Pollution

After 3-year discussions within a working group of the Japanese CIE and then 2-year discussion under a committee of the Environmental Agency in Japan, “Guideline for Light Pollution - Aiming for Good Lighting Environments” was published by the Environmental Agency. This is the first governmental guideline in the world and therefore a good example to be discussed in the other countries.

Work for the Reduction of Light Pollution in Turkey

In recent years Turkey has been losing the beauty of its night sky at a fast rate. The amount of outdoor lighting is increasing every day. University observatories at Ankara and Izmir are already irreversibly affected by light pollution. In this paper, work against light pollution in Turkey is outlined.

95/04172 Guidance notes for the reduction of light pollution

95/04172 Guidance notes for the reduction of light pollution

Publicizing Light Pollution and Its Cures

ABSTRACTPublicity is the first and most important tool in efforts to achieve control and reduction of light pollution. It should identify the ways in which light pollution is detrimental to vital human concerns, such as esthetic enjoyment of the heavens, scientific research, and the operation of cost efficient lighting, and take into account the relative importance of the various concerns for each prospective audience or readership.