This is a major problem in the developed world

Apr 15, 2010 09:00 GMT  ·  By

As all people living in large cities know, light pollution is everywhere in the developed world. Neon signs, street lights and various other sources produce sufficient amounts of light to obscure the night sky. In some of the world's most widespread metropolises, such as New York, the stars are rarely visible, and some people complain that this is very disruptive. Things are equally as bad in the United Kingdom, where various organizations are calling on the government to reduce the phenomenon.

People in the UK say that their view of the night sky is severely disrupted on account of light pollution, even in rural areas that have thus far been spared. As such, many signed up for the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), which seeks to press the government into exerting more control on how street lights and luminous firms are used during the night. The British Astronomical Association (BAA) also conducted a survey on a representative population sample, and determined that a large number of people had their habits disrupted by light pollution.

The research found that about 83 percent of the population was affected by this uniquely-human type of pollution. Additionally, about half of the respondents said that their sleep had been affected by the excessive lighting. In large cities, the amount of light that permeates the atmosphere is high enough to create a dawn-like feeling, which is very confusing for humans. This happens because our circadian rhythms, the internal clocks that dictate when we should sleep and when to stay awake, are affected by the amount of light we are exposed to. The new BAA investigation was conducted on 1,745 UK citizens, the BBC News reports.

“Light pollution is an unnecessary waste and detracts from the natural beauty of the night sky, it's understandable that it makes people angry. […] The costs of not acting are clear: Unnecessarily high energy bills for councils, and therefore for local taxpayers, more carbon emissions, disrupted sleeping patterns for people, disturbance to wildlife, and a night sky bereft of the majesty of the Milky Way,” explains CPRE rural policy campaigner Emma Marrington. It is estimated that city councils in the rural environment spend no less than £532 million ($822.5 million) on nighttime lighting. Light pollution also accounts for 5 to 10 percent of their overall carbon emissions.