Our relationship with the environment we work in is one of the most important facets of our business, second only to our relationship with our clients. The landscape, the trees and flowers – these are the canvas to our lighting paint. The foliage catches the light, reflects it, and intrigues us with its depth and complexity, and the dark skies provide it contrast. A certain respect for the environment is due, given how much beauty it offers us in return.
It may seem like lighting up the night goes against the natural rhythm and flow of the world – disturbing the environment and it’s inhabitants instead of caring for it. Indeed, poorly designed or maintained lighting systems can disrupt wildlife and natural seasonal patterns as well as our own human circadian rhythms. Because light pollution is an inherent danger in our industry, it is critical to understand the effects and mechanisms that cause it in order to better avoid its pitfalls.
Threats to the Dark Skies
We may not realize all the ways we are affected by light pollution when we live in the city. Increased stress levels, poor sleep habits – even increased chances for health conditions like diabetes, hormonal imbalances, weight gain – even cancer. As much as it can affect humans, the animals and insects that live their lives outside feel those effects two-fold. Reproduction cycles can be thrown out of season, migration routes confused, feeding patterns disturbed – every species relies on the signals of the natural world to guide it’s life.
So what causes this? There are a few main mistakes made when implementing outdoor lighting that serve as the main culprits. Lights improperly aimed at their target can cast excessive light unbroken into the sky – or into the eye line of neighbors. However, lesser degrees of this mistake – such as “light trespassing”, when light spills past the bounds of its intended purpose – can also contribute to light pollution.
Intense brightness or particularly white light color temperatures further exacerbate the issue. Even simple choices like how long or how late the lights stay on can also make a huge impact. All the collective lighting mistakes find their way skyward, contributing to ‘sky glow’ the largest form of light pollution that hangs over the heads of most cities, blocking out stars and further disrupting all of us animals back on earth.
Dark Sky Allies
There are many steps we are taking here at Carolina Outdoor Lighting to make sure the systems we design leave the biggest impact on our clients and the smallest impact on the environment they live in. Making sure our lights hit their targets, using a larger number of dimmer fixtures, and selecting appropriate color temperatures are just the basic steps. The sky is part of the decision making process from the very beginning of the design to the very end of the installation.
In certain places where the wildlife is particularly abundant or especially sensitive, there are ‘extra miles’ we can take. Implementing more rigorous timing schedules reduces the time where the light can impact the environment as well as helps avoid the most critical hours for animal activity. Even the shape and style of the fixtures selected can be adjusted to suit to our dark sky goals – longer shrouds, glare reducing screens, or special color temperatures that avoid wavelengths used for navigation by local species.
An important element of being dark sky conscious, is to know that every environment is unique and has its own blend of flora and fauna – each with their own habits and lifecycles. Becoming familiar with the particulars of each specific environment allows us to cater the design to the client and their ‘neighbors’.
Moving Forward
The research and education available on dark skies science is ever evolving, and new technological advances are made every year to better tackle this problem. Motion sensitive fixtures, long-scale dimmers, better fixture design, and new design theories will all advance this field even more. If protecting the dark sky and preventing light pollution is as important to you as it is to us, let us know! If you want to learn more about the importance of the Dark Sky Initiative or investigate what you can do to help, check out the resources linked below. Check out our portfolio too, to see how we design with the sky in mind!