Light pollution and poorly designed external lighting fixtures are having serious side effects in many aspects of our lives. For instance, the Milky Way is no longer visible from the urban areas around our City. This is not a necessary effect of outdoor lighting but a consequence of poor lighting practice.

The present changeover to LEDs is exacerbating this problem.  LED lamps currently proposed for suburban street lighting in Victoria have a colour temperature of about 4000 or more. Lamps with an output at or above this range are generally regarded as being ‘blue rich’.  Exposure to light at night with a colour temperature of greater than 3000 K represents unnecessary additional long-term health risks, along with increased glare and reduced visual performance for drivers at night. It is the older people in the driver population who are most affected.  Street lighting with lamps of more than 3000 K should not be permitted anywhere at night in Victoria. Lower values are readily available and would be better.

The balance of evidence is that suburban street lighting does not reduce motor vehicle accidents. There is evidence to show that more lighting increases the crime rate.
The high colour temperature chosen for the LEDs increases glare and makes our streets less safe. There is much evidence that shows excessive night time lighting also has profound effects on health - humans, animals and plants. Blue-rich light at night is a known risk factor for breast and prostate cancers and other serious diseases.

Light pollution can seriously disrupt bird migrations resulting in mass bird deaths. Turning off street lighting in the small hours will reduce carbon emissions. The latest LED lights at a minimum need to be shielded to throw their light on the ground and not wasted with stray horizontal  and even upwardly directed light. 

Please check out the following links for further more detailed information.  I encourage you to watch the U-tube link, it will take 10 minutes of your time but explains all the arguments very clearly.  The light pollution maps show the growth of light pollution over a number of years.

Regards

 Linda Richmond

https://www.youtube.com/watch v=ng9ddb8twAQ
http://www.lightpollutionmap info/#zoom=12&lat=-4575624. 76371&lon=16150640.42581& layers=B0TFFFFTT
http://www.darkskyvic.org/

The Honeysuckles -Wellington Shire Council Decision against lighting - http://www.darkskyvic.org/the-honeysuckles-wellington-shire-council-decision/

Photograph by Mark Sansom