What is light pollution?
Light pollution is a sub-category of pollution that refers to the inappropriate or excessive use of artificial lighting. there is not as much information on this phenomenon since there is a heavier focus on other types of pollution, such as water. It goes from an individual level to a community one, where it is used to light streets during the day. the overuse of light can result in over-illumination that extends to the night and can result in negative impacts on the environment and those within it. As a consequence of industrialization and the need to have more light to work, constant illumination has resulted in light through the night and a constant need to have light at all hours of the day.
It is estimated that more or less 83 per cent of people live under a clear and less light-polluted sky. The rest witnesses the so-called “skyglow”, a consequence of the over-illumination of cities; it concerns a diffuse diffusion of light in the night sky due to light sources.
It is compromising for health and ecosystems. Light pollution does not damage just the environment but also humans. They can witness symptoms such as dazzle, change in circadian rhythms (coined by Halberg, the term refers to the 24 hours), possible damages in the eye tissue and hormonal surges. Along the process of damaging human health, a specific hormone is inhibited, the melatonin. Its reduction increases sleep deprivation, fatigue, stress, anxiety and stress. Different studies also proved that it affects also animal migrations because they can lose their way and die.
During the 1980s, the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) was founded. It is a non-profit organization based in the USA born to preserve and protect the environment from the light-pollution, especially the quality of outdoor.
Are there any ways to help reduce light pollution? Yes! Here are some tips that are easy to follow in everyday life.
First, turn off all the lights you do not need at that moment.
Second, cover direct lights to reduce the level.
Thirdly, if possible, try to install lights with motion sensors. It is a good way to save money too.
Last but not least, try to use lights with different colours. The worse kind of light for houses in terms of pollution is the LED type. This is because LED contains more blue and it alters the most visible spectrum.
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