Tuesday, September 7, 2010 Safety tips help kids when going back to school.
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ary Annivers 1985-2010
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Environment
Astronomer urges us to turn off lights It’s called light pollution and Maple Ridge’s Mark Eburne wants us to take it seriously to make our community more livable.
by Jeremy Shepherd editorial@mrtimes.com
O
ne local astronomer is blaming streetlights and glowing signs for turning Maple Ridge’s night sky into a shadow of its former self. “I bought a telescope and found the problems of looking at the night sky,” said Mark Eburne, a member of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada and chair of the organization’s Vancouver Light Pollution Abatement committee. Eburne realized the reason he couldn’t see the stars was light pollution, an accumulation of light from man-made sources that brightens the night and has been linked to certain health problems. Eburne has since dedicated himself to eradicating the problem and bringing the constellations back into focus.
“Eighty per cent of kids will never see the Milky Way because of light pollution.” Mark Eburne The amateur astronomer has been providing information to Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge officials over the past year in hopes of eliminating the dull glare he said hangs over the area at night. “Eighty per cent of kids will never see the Milky Way because of light pollution,” he said. Eburne said Maple Ridge Mayor Ernie Daykin has been very receptive on the issue. “Ernie is the one who has really
Maple Ridge’s Mark Eburne is a member of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada and chair of the organization’s Vancouver Light Pollution Abatement committee. Troy Landreville/TIMES spearheaded it for me,” he said. Daykin said light pollution is one of several environmental issues his staff is investigating. Still, Daykin said it might be awhile before nights darken in Maple Ridge. “I don’t know if it’s going to get done six months from now or 18 months from now,” he said, discussing a report he’s waiting for from staff. Daykin acknowledged moving at a slower pace than Eburne would like but said reducing light pollution needs to be balanced with public safety concerns. “Do street lights need to be on full-bore at night?” he asked. “Maybe not.”
Daykin said the new lamps being installed downtown have shades that make the light point straight down. For Eburne, sooner is definitely better. “I really equate it to the move to recycling,” he said. Besides developers who don’t account for light pollution when building, Eburne said his main obstacle is the reluctance of the Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge councils to enact new rules. “They’re very cautious about putting in new bylaws,” he said. Eburne said part of educating the public is letting people know light pollution affects everyone. “It’s a worldwide problem,” he said.
Besides sleep problems, Eburne said too much light at night has been linked to some forms of cancer. A group of scientists in Israel published a report in 2008 linking light pollution to a rise in breast cancer in Israeli women employed as shift-workers. The Royal Commission of Environmental Protection in the United Kingdom has published a report tracing light pollution to suppression of melatonin levels. Melatonin helps regulate the body’s circadian rhythm, the internal clock that tells people when to sleep and when to wake up. Besides possible health risks,
Eburne said excessive light doesn’t make economic sense. “It just wastes a lot of money to produce light that is not used,” he said. Eburne said dealing with light pollution would not make streets more dangerous. “The correct lighting is safer than more lighting,” he said. Some data also indicates light pollution might have an effect on birds. A 2005 study by the United States Federal Aviation Administration found birds were more likely to fly into control towers that used steady burning lights. The report predicted a switch to flashing beacons could reduce bird fatalities by as much as 70 per cent.
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