Stargazer wants cities to turn the lights off
Print Edition
TEACHING astronomy in a busy metropolis where the starry night sky is often obscured by light pollution is no easy task.
In his work with the Guangzhou youth science and technology education association in south China’s Guangdong Province, one of Han Yan’s main tasks is to lead students in observing the night sky.
“Our work is really affected by light pollution,” he said, “meaning we have to travel to the suburbs to get a really clear view of the stars.”
Hoping to address this problem, Han, who is also a member of the Guangzhou Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, submitted a light pollution control proposal to the local government at the beginning of the year.
Much to his delight, the Guangzhou environmental protection bureau issued a draft regulation on light pollution, which was published on November 17. It is currently at the public consultation stage.
The draft covers initiatives such as the thickness of glass panels on buildings, the illumination of roads and neon lighting.
According to the draft, buildings within 100 meters of residential areas may not install glass on sides facing residences, and outdoor advertisements and signs with LED screens should be turned off from 10:30pm to 7:30am.
Should the draft be passed, it will be China's first piece of local legislation on light pollution.
Light can also be a health risk.
Zhou Yongzhang, a professor at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, said the light reflected by huge installations of glass can damage the photoreceptor cells of the retina and may result in road accidents.
Brightly lit advertisements that remain turned on at night may disturb people's body clocks or affect their sleep, he said.
Zhou also said light pollution can be more harmful when combined with air pollution.
“Light can decompose and synthesize with pollutants in the air such as PM2.5, forming new pollutants. This secondary pollution can be even more detrimental to human health,” he said.
Complaints on the rise
According to the Guangzhou environmental protection department, the city's police received 34 complaints relating to light pollution between 2009 and 2013, and this rose to 70 between January 2013 and March 2014. The complaints were mainly related to road lighting and advertisements.
Li Mingguang, director of the Guangzhou Research Institute of Environmental Protection policy research center, said light pollution has come to the fore in recent years in large cities such as Shanghai, Beijing and Nanjing.
The Nanjing government issued a guideline on urban landscape lighting, which limited or prohibited lighting projects in certain areas.
Li said that as studies on light pollution were in their infancy there was no specific legislation on light pollution yet. Guangzhou's legislation, Han said, is a significant step, despite it having flaws.
“For example, there is no restrictions on brightness, the spectra patterns or installation standards. Nevertheless, since currently there are no technical standards regarding light pollution, it is understandable,” he said.
The real test will come after the draft is agreed. Zhou said effective implementation will be “a hard nut to crack.”
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