We have had light pollution ever since lights were invented. Although light pollution isn’t as well known as some problems like gas pollution or endangered species, it is still very much of a problem.
There are five problems that light pollution causes:
1. Glare- Glare is when there is some bright light and it can make you feel safe but glare creates dark shadows for trespassers to hide in. On the street, when you are driving, if you can’t see on a foggy day, it is probably because of glare. The extra light reflects off the condensed water on the window shield and makes it hard to see.
2. Light trespass- Light trespass is when light from another property spills onto yours. This is not only very inconvenient and annoying; it could put you in some danger because of Glare. In some countries light trespass is illegal and you may be charged up to $10,000.
3. Urban sky- Urban sky is a halo of light that goes around most cities. Have you ever been watching a movie and suddenly someone turns on the light? The movie suddenly disappears before your eyes. No one turned off the T.V. and your T.V. did not break, it was just the trick of the light. The light that is being turned on is like what is happening in the city. The halo of light (i.e. urban sky) blocks out the starlight, making the starlight very dim. Urban sky blocks out the night sky, the Milky Way, and many of the stars. We can only see some of the brighter stars in the city. Most of the time you should be able to see about 2500 stars in the night sky. In the city, you can only see about 100-200.
4. Energy waste- Energy waste is using a lot of unnecessary resources by using extra light. The U.S.A alone wastes over 1 billion dollars on light that they don’t even need.
5. Hurts some animals- Sea creatures that are born on land (e.g. puffins and sea turtles) use moonlight to lead them back to the sea. When there is artificial lighting, they see ‘moonlight’ everywhere. They will follow this ‘moonlight’ to (presumably) the city, away from their habitat. They may starve, get run over by cars, or run out of water. Only 1 in every 1000 sea turtles is likely to survive to be an adult.