Light Pollution

I have spent most of my life living in the country. It has never been isolated wilderness, but houses were widely separated from each other on multi-acre tracts with trees adding a layer of natural privacy. People often had one or two exterior light fixtures, usually near a door and/or illuminating part of the driveway with incandescent bulbs. Even these were usually turned off when turning in for the night. One more wealthy neighbor had some ornamental street lights installed along his driveway, but even these exuded a comforting yellow glow of modest candlepower.

As the nearby town has grown, we have noticed more and more light pollution erase stars near the horizon over the years. The black of night is no longer what it was. Part of this is due to population growth in general, and part seems due to people who relocated to escape urban insanity and just don't understand that night is supposed to be dark.

One such house caught my eye on my drive home tonight from Dungeons & Dragons & Discussions. Well, not so much caught my eye as nearly blinded both of them. A house well back from the road had glaringly bright midnight lighting stolen from an airport. This was as blindingly obnoxious as HotDamn High Beams (a nod to @generikat and @itheshow) but it was emanating not from oncoming traffic, but from someone's yard.

The dark is not your enemy. Some light, especially with motion detectors if you are concerned about 2- or 4-legged intruders, is probably fine. Retina-scorching illumination all night long is stupid! You're wasting money on the fixtures, wasting money on the electricity, and disturbing both wildlife and your neighbors. This isn't urban California. We're rural, we're less than 100 miles south of Canada, and it's winter. Night happens. Welcome it, or at least learn to live with it. Be considerate toward your 2-, 4-, and 6-legged neighbors, please.

If you are involved in any construction project or renovation anywhere in the country or city, consider light pollution mitigation as part of your design process. A little work goes a long way toward saving energy and creating a more human-friendly environment. We probably can't turn around urban planning trends, but we can be mindful of our impact as individuals and take steps where opportunity presents itself. At least turn off your damn stolen airport search light cluster when you tuck yourself into bed!

OK, maybe I'm exaggerating, and it's only a stolen stadium floodlight array. Image credit