Pittsburgh is the latest city to join the dark-sky movement

2021-12-29T19:59:00-05:00

The Pennsylvania city announced in August it will become a dark sky city starting in 2022, meaning that it will switch to lower wattage LED bulbs and add shades along bridges, roads and other public areas. It’s the first city in the eastern part of the U.S. to adopt such policies but it joins other cities, including Tucson, Sedona and Flagstaff in Arizona, and Fulda in Germany, in their efforts to reduce light pollution and increase energy efficiency.

The dark-sky movement officially began in 1988, has produced events such as Earth Hour, and is currently expanding into other U.S. cities such as Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia.

Light pollution caused by stronger “white” LED fixtures has been shown to cause health and environmental harm along with negatively impacting the circadian rhythm of both humans and animals alike. To date, Pittsburgh has committed $16 million dollars to streetlight projects which will install about 40,000 fixtures in a period of 12–18 months. The city’s push is also beneficial to the reduction of traffic accidents and sense of pedestrian safety, according to Carnegie Mellon professor Diane Turnshek.

“It’s better for the environment, if you change to these low wattage and low color temperature lights,” she told Bloomberg. “It’s better for people’s health, better stars, and just across the board they’re better.”

Medical experts issue warning about street lights

2017-06-26T12:11:00-04:00

The American Medical Association (AMA) has just adopted an official policy statement about street lighting: cool it and dim it. The statement, adopted unanimously at the AMA's annual meeting in Chicago on June 14, comes in response to the rise of new LED street lighting sweeping the country. An AMA committee issued guidelines on how communities can choose LED streetlights to "minimize potential harmful human health and environmental effects."

There are two basic issues at hand. First, new, "white" LED lighting, which have a color temperature of between 4000K and 5000K, can cause discomfort and glare. This is because the light is concentrate and has high blue content, which can cause severe glare and force pupillary constriction. Second, these lights can impact human circadian rhythmicity, affecting our sleeping pattern. And, actually, it's not just human sleeping patterns at risk—wildlife migratory patterns are being disrupted as well.

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Pittsburgh is the latest city to join the dark-sky movement

Medical experts issue warning about street lights