The Swellendam Municipality has recently 'upgraded' Barrydale's streetlights with incredibly-bright LED light bulbs. Not only is the resulting stark lighting incongruous with the aesthetic of a small country village, it is infringing on many residents' homes, forcing them to find solutions to block out the intrusive light entering their bedrooms. There are also legitimate health concerns for humans and wildlife. As per Google: 

Issues with LED Streetlights: 

• Glare & Vision Impairment: Bright, blue-white LEDs (high Kelvin/CCT) scatter light, causing "disability glare" that impairs vision, especially for older eyes, making it harder to see obstacles near the light source.
• Circadian Rhythm Disruption: The blue light suppresses melatonin, disrupting sleep patterns in humans, linked to potential long-term health issues like obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
• Wildlife Impact: Bright, blue-rich light confuses nocturnal animals (birds, insects, turtles, fish), disrupting foraging, migration, and reproduction.
• Light Pollution (Skyglow): Blue light scatters more easily in the atmosphere, increasing skyglow and obscuring the night sky, even with shielded fixtures

In creating this petition we are hoping to have enough residents showing concern for the above, to open a dialogue with the municipality with the aim of finding a solution, or at the very least , a compromise. It must be pointed out that we the rate-payers were not consulted or even informed about the change to LED lights. It would be encouraging to believe that our local government is for the people, and takes them into consideration when making decisions that impact upon them. 

NOTE: In the spirit of giving those who are FOR the extremely-bright LED lights a platform to say so, please also sign the petition, and add 'FOR THE LEDS' after your name. 

Thanks