{"id":71484,"date":"2026-04-13T18:22:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T12:52:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=71484"},"modified":"2026-04-13T18:24:05","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T12:54:05","slug":"light-pollution-artificial-light-threat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/13-04-2026\/light-pollution-artificial-light-threat","title":{"rendered":"Light Pollution: Rising Threat from Artificial Light at Night (ALAN)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/Environment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A study published in the <strong>journal <\/strong><strong><em>Nature<\/em><\/strong> has found that artificial light at night increased by 16% globally between 2014 and 2022.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The sharpest rise has been observed in <strong>Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia<\/strong>, with <strong>India and China <\/strong>emerging as major contributors in Asia.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What Is Light Pollution<\/strong><strong>?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Light pollution is the human-made alteration of outdoor light levels from those occurring naturally. In practical terms, it refers to unwanted, inappropriate, or excessive artificial lighting, primarily caused by Artificial Light at Night (ALAN).\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It is increasingly recognised as an <strong>anthropogenic environmental pollutant<\/strong>. It is estimated that:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Over 80% of the world\u2019s population<\/strong> lives under light-polluted skies;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Around <strong>23% of Earth\u2019s land area<\/strong> is affected by skyglow.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Causes<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Rapid urbanisation: <\/strong>Today, about <strong>55% of the global population lives in urban areas<\/strong>, and this is projected to rise to <strong>68% by 2050<\/strong>, significantly increasing the demand for outdoor lighting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Unregulated outdoor lighting<\/strong>: In poorly regulated systems (unshielded streetlights, billboards, fa\u00e7ade lighting), 30\u201350% of emitted light is wasted upward or sideways, directly contributing to skyglow.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Vehicle-induced light pollution: <\/strong>Rapid growth in vehicle numbers increases headlight glare and roadway illumination.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India has over 30 crore registered vehicles, contributing significantly to urban night brightness.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Shift-based work: <\/strong>Expansion of 24\u00d77 services (IT, healthcare, transport, manufacturing) leads to continuous lighting demand.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Impacts<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Human Health: <\/strong>Exposure to artificial light at night suppresses melatonin production, leading to insomnia and other health issues.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Chronic exposure to light pollution has been linked to increased stress and reduced cognitive performance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Environmental and Ecological: <\/strong>Nocturnal animals, migratory birds, and insects rely on natural light cycles.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Birds living in brightly lit areas tend to sing earlier at dawn and later at dusk, disrupting their natural rhythms and negatively impacting migration, feeding, and breeding patterns.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Similar effects occur in species like fireflies, whose communication suffers. Artificial lighting confuses navigation and feeding patterns.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Astronomy and Scientific Research:\u00a0 <\/strong>Brightening of the night sky hampers astronomical observations, especially near urban centers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Energy Waste: <\/strong>Billions of units of electricity are wasted annually due to poorly directed lighting, increasing carbon emissions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Government Initiatives to Curb Light Pollution<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Energy Conservation Building Code (2017): <\/strong>The ECBC is a set of standards established by India&#8217;s Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) to promote sustainable design and reduce energy consumption by 25\u201350% in new commercial buildings.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Street Lighting National Programme (SLNP): <\/strong>Launched in 2015, to replace conventional street lights with smart and energy-efficient LED streetlights across the country.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Smart Cities Mission: <\/strong>Adaptive lighting is a core component of India&#8217;s Smart Cities Mission, designed to optimize energy consumption and reduce light pollution by dynamically adjusting street lamp intensity based on real-time traffic and time conditions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Environmental Protection Act 1986: <\/strong>Provides umbrella power to the Central Government to regulate environmental pollution of all kinds.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Light pollution is not explicitly defined, but can be regulated as a form of environmental disturbance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Light pollution is an emerging environmental challenge driven by rapid urbanisation and unregulated artificial lighting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There is a need to formally recognise Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) as an environmental pollutant and integrate light pollution standards into urban planning, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), and biodiversity conservation frameworks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A balanced approach between development and ecological protection is essential, ensuring that night skies remain a shared natural heritage while safeguarding human health and biodiversity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/science\/satellite-data-reveal-earth-is-getting-brighter-at-night-major-regions-include-sub-saharan-africa-and-southeast-asia\/articleshow\/130142994.cms\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>TOI<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong> Context<\/p>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">\nA study published in the journal Nature has found that artificial light at night increased by 16% globally between 2014 and 2022.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong><\/p>\n<p>What Is Light Pollution?<\/p>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"\t>\nLight pollution is the human-made alteration of outdoor light levels from those occurring naturally. In practical terms, it refers to unwanted, inappropriate, or excessive artificial lighting, primarily caused by Artificial Light at Night (ALAN).\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">\nIt is increasingly recognised as an anthropogenic environmental pollutant. It is estimated that:\n<\/li>\n<p><a href=\" https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/13-04-2026\/light-pollution-artificial-light-threat \" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71484"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71484\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71486,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71484\/revisions\/71486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}