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This Blog is written by Sakshi Sahoo from KIIT School of Law, Odisha. Edited by Shelal Lodhi Rajput.

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INTRODUCTION

Ever since the light bulb’s invention one hundred and fifty years ago, artificial light has illuminated homes, streets, and skies but with some unintended consequences.[1] Undoubtedly light guides us home, keeps us secure and safe but at a cost of negatively impacting the ecosystem we are living in, the night sky and the wildlife too. Light pollution can be described as unwanted or excessive lighting emitted by the electric bulb or other non-natural luminous objects. There are basically three types of light pollution:

• Glare- it is the excessive amount of light that temporarily impairs the eyes.

• Sky glow- brightening of the sky where the people reside.

• Light trespass- an unnecessary area where the light falls.

IMPACT

According to research scientist Christopher Kyba, for nocturnal animals, “the introduction of artificial light probably represents the most drastic change human beings have made to their environment.” [2] Let’s have a look at the degree of impact it creates on different beings: –

1) Impact on wildlife and ecosystem:

Wildlife as in sea turtles hatch mostly during the night and it is so that they follow the moonlight but due to the night sky glow they get misguided and divert from their path to the ocean and in this way thousands of them die every year. Nocturnal animals like an owl who stay awake at night and sleep during the day get affected since the city lights baffle them and the nights also appear day to them.

And many such instances where the wildlife is disturbed solely due to the light pollution.

2) Impact on Humans:

The human clock that regulates the body is known as the circadian clock, this controls all the physiological process in the body and one among them is the secretion of a hormone named melatonin which when gets disturbed due to the improper sleep pattern cause illness such as depression, insomnia, and many more disease.

3) Impact on Astronomy:

Due to so much scattering of night lights, it’s completely impossible to stargaze and study the night sky.

PROVISION IN LAW

In India, there is no such law for light pollution till now but there is in common law that is section 102 of the Clean Neighbourhood and Environment Act,2005 amends Section 79 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to include nuisance from the artificial light. However certain premises are exempted from the legislation. These are the premises used primarily for the transportation and premises where the high levels of light are required for safety and security reasons include:[3]

• Airports

• Railway premises

• Bus stations and associated facilities

• Lighthouses

• Prisons

• Defence facilities

ANALYSIS

A bulb should illuminate the dark, it should not bring along a dark side with itself. After reading about light pollution we are pretty much aware of how it is caused and its impact on different species and etc. The mother earth is solely degrading due to the deeds of human beings. If we look into our past, we will not find anything as light pollution because this is neither intentional pollution nor was anticipated anytime when the electric bulb was invented. But according to me, it is not late to start and save the day. We can stop light pollution in many ways such as:

-by minimizing the sodium content in the street lights which will definitely avoid light trespass,

– reducing the air pollution index will also be very helpful in as the dust, fumes, etc carry the light particles and scatter more,

– turning off the lights which are not necessary is very vital and can contribute to a greater deal if people will practice it on a daily basis on a large scale,

– awareness programs can be initiated by the government in order to educate and illuminate people on this topic, which if not done now, will lead to darker consequences.

– initiatives like dark hours are a great help to the problem where people can switch off the lights for one hour in a day,

– inspiring oneself to stargaze might also help.

CONCLUSION

The issue of light pollution is still very fresh and almost half of the population does not know about such existence of pollution. But the government should take initiatives from the present moment before its too late to stop and regret. Laws should be enacted and should be adhered to by the citizens since industrialization and the busy schedule of the people has landed us in such a situation.

REFERENCES

[1] http://www.nationalgeographic.com

[2] Ibid.

[3] http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/43/section/79.