Stop
Lighting Up My Life
here’s a new
kind of pollution. You probably haven’t
heard about it, it doesn’t affect your
health, and it will have no long-term impact on
the state of the planet. But more and more people
say they are bothered by it. It’s called
light pollution. Caused by excess light from
homes, streetlights, and commercial sources,
light pollution obstructs a clear view of the
heavens. In cities and suburbs, it’s
becoming increasingly harder to see the 2,500
stars which should be visible to the naked eye.
And now activists are trying to do something
about that. Light pollution is primarily a
complaint of suburbanites. Residents of
America’s inner cities certainly have larger
things to worry about, and rural folks can see
all they want. So it’s been left to people
with telescopes and way too much time on their
hands to oversee the war on light pollution.
They’re asking for people to voluntarily
turn off lights, but they’re also pushing
for local regulations prohibiting spotlights and
requirements that "nonessential"
lighting be turned off during non-business hours.
They’ve been successful in communities from
Connecticut to San Diego, and Nevada must
certainly be on their hit list. For obvious
reasons, the Silver State may be the worst state
in the union for light pollution. Since it’s
also the most urban state—83 percent of us
live within metropolitan Reno and Las
Vegas—the self-appointed light pollution
police may come knocking on your door soon. Their
hearts may be in the right place—may be, I
said—but I’m a little uncomfortable
about this "nonessential" lighting
business. Who exactly decides what is and
isn’t essential lighting? Something tells me
Nevada’s casino executives share my
concerns. From NPRI, you think about that! u
