Reduction of excessive light around Mt. Mégantic puts eyes back on the stars.
Imagine a world without stars in the night sky. What at you going to stare at with your significant other while cuddling under a warm blanket? How are you going to make a wish if you can’t see the stars? Sounds like a boring place to be at night, right? This isn’t a hypothetical problem, however. It is in fact very real in this day and age. The culprit is light pollution.
What is light pollution, you might ask? Simply put, light pollution is the overuse of lighting. It is mostly located in populated areas where lights are used to make streets more visible. For example, advertisements for shops and lights in apartments are just some of the things that use extra light in cities. Many light systems within cities all over the world are excessive, unnecessary and ineffective. The light coming from all of these sources is either aimed directly at the sky or it is reflected off of various other objects and into the sky. This phenomenon might not seem like a big problem to some people because it is not something that is permanent, and it only occurs at night. Meaning, if all lights were turned off, the problem would disappear. Realistically speaking however, our society requires light to function therefore such a solution would be impossible.
This surplus of light during night-time, which we now call as ‘light pollution,’ has many effects that go unnoticed by the majority of the world’s populace. For one, the overnight light can confuse migratory animals, such as various birds and moths. The cycle of life on earth is guided by patterns of light and darkness and if this pattern is changed, entire habitats could change as well.
In the case of moths, their dark camouflage, used to get away from prey during the night, is less effective. Because the migratory pattern of moths that pollinate flowers is also affected, the number of plants which bloom flowers have been declining. Another issue being dealt with is the amount of visible stars in the sky. If you’ve visited a big city like Sherbooke or Montreal, you might have noticed that when you look at the sky at night, you can’t see very many stars. This isn’t just a problem for regular people who live in the city, but also for astronomers. The light makes it harder for them to look at the stars, even with the use of a telescope, and it interferes with the collection of data for professional astronomers. Lastly, a few studies have suggested that light pollution might be a factor in causing breast cancer, particularly among night-time workers. A chemical called melatonin is produced at night inside the body which helps fight breast cancer, therefore light pollution during the night might be suppressing that chemical.
However, there is some hope despite all of this doom and gloom! A current example of light pollution that has been taken care of is located in the region of Mt. Mégantic. Many research, educational and touristic activities done in the region rely on astronomical observations, so the sky needed to be protected from light.
From the observatory located at Mt. Mégantic, three sources of light were identified as being the main culprits: (1) half of the light came from municipalities within 25 km, (2) a quarter from the city of Sherbrooke and (3) another quarter from other sources. The observatory’s plan in making the region more light efficient came in four parts: (1) to eliminate high energy consuming bulbs, (2) to replace light posts that cast light upwards towards the sky, (3) reduce places that are over illuminated, and (4) to turn off particular lights outside of operating hours. The total cost of their anti light pollution project cost 1.7 million over a three year period and approximately 1,900,000 kWh of electricity per year is being saved. This amount of saving per year equals $200,000 worth of energy saved per year. That number, in the long run, will pay for the project several times over.
Do your part! At home, remember to turn off the lights that you aren’t using at that particular time. Also, check your home to see if you really need all the lighting in a certain room, perhaps one light would have the same effect. Another sensible option would be to change your light bulbs to a lower wattage or to buy some of the ecological light bulbs that use less energy. After all, if you’re using less energy, less fossil fuel is required to make the electricity! If you’ve already done all of this, perhaps a relaxing camping trip is in order? That way you can enjoy the beautiful starry sky that is visible thanks to your good deeds.
