Living under a starry blue sky now seems like a distant dream for many people in Delhi-NCR or any major city worldwide. City lights illuminate buildings, roads, and touristy spots and contribute to an emerging environmental concern: light pollution.
Maybe the term right now does not seem too alarming, but here are a few numbers which might raise your eyebrows. Over the past 25 years, artificial lighting has surged by 49% worldwide. For perspective, the night sky’s brightness has risen by almost 10% per year over the last 12 years. Around 80% of the global population is now affected by light pollution.
What is Light Pollution?
We’ve read about light pollution in school textbooks, but now it’s a pressing issue. Light pollution, defined as excessive or misdirected artificial light, is a growing problem in major cities worldwide.
Believe it or not, according to the New World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness, over 80% of the world lives under light-polluted skies.
According to media reports, scientists explain in Science Advances, how ground measurements and satellite data were used to create an atlas of a world brightened by artificial lights.
It reveals that the population of Singapore, Kuwait and Qatar experience the brightest night skies.
Conversely, people living in Chad, Central African Republic and Madagascar are least affected by light pollution.
Impact on Flora And Fauna
According to Winslow Briggs’s chapter on plant responses in the 2006 book Ecological Consequences of Artificial Night Lighting, prolonged exposure to artificial light prevents many trees from adjusting to seasonal variations. This, in turn, has implications for wildlife that depend on trees for their natural habitat. Research on insects, turtles, birds, fish, reptiles, and other wildlife species shows that light pollution can alter behaviours, foraging areas, and breeding cycles in urban and rural areas.
Impact On Humans
Exposure to artificial light at night suppresses melatonin production in our bodies. Melatonin suppression has been shown to negatively affect our health by increasing the risk of obesity, sleep disorders, diabetes, breast and prostate cancer, and depression.
Light Pollution and Alzheimer
Researchers at Rush University Medical Center, US, have found that nighttime light pollution is more strongly correlated with the prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in people aged under 65 than other risk factors like alcohol abuse, chronic kidney disease, depression, and obesity.
“We show that there is a positive association between AD prevalence and exposure to light at night, particularly in those under the age of 65. Nightly light pollution – a modifiable environmental factor, may be an important risk factor for AD,” said Dr Robin Voigt-Zuwala, Associate Professor at Rush University Medical Center to the media.
Is It A Solvable Problem?
Yes, it is a solvable problem. And it’s pretty easy, too. To avoid the negative effects of light pollution, you can make informed choices when installing lighting features in your backyard and within your community.
