Keeping Cities in the Dark

"The trillions of points of light in the true night sky are no match for the mere billions on the ground. You know the culprits: streetlights; parking lots; gas stations; billboards; preening McMansions; 'security' lighting; athletic fields; headlights....and on and on. Parking lots alone can account for up to 50% of a city’s outdoor lighting. It all piles up in icteritious 'domes' that hover above every urban area in the country."

"Just as Americans in the 1950s gleefully inhaled smog in the name of progress, Americans now surrender the night for much the same reason. Tablets and smart phones are today’s cigarettes, enabling us to further disrupt our eyesight, hormone production, and circadian rhythms."

"Ordinances regulating light pollution could be integrated into a general plan, replete with Bortle ratings to set goals and track progress. The International Dark-Sky Association, an admittedly quirky organization to which Bogard makes repeated reference, has model programs that can help cities reconnect their citizens to the sublime."

"There's an argument to be made that atmospheric light pollution should be covered under the California Environmental Quality Act. CEQA does refer to light pollution, but that typically refers to nuisances in an immediate area. The entire skyscape might be a tough one for public officials to regulate: it is either immutable or, at a few light years’ remove, too far out of their jurisdiction. But surely the health risks of artificial light to 39 million people might justify action?"