HON  301  Welcome  to  the  Anthropocene  

Light  Pollu9on  

 F.  Walter  April  2020  

 

Mario  Mo?a,  MD  Associate  Professor,  TuEs  U.  Pracricing  cardiologist  AMA  Council  of  Science  and                  Public  Health  AMA  trustee  IDA  board  

The  Night  Sky  is  Not  as  Dark  as  it  Was  

•     

The  Los  Angeles  Basin  as  seen  from  the  Mt  Wilson  Observatory  LeE:  1908  Right:  2007  

Earth  at  Night  

•     

Earth  at  Night  –  Then  and  Now  

•     

Light  Pollu9on  is  Bad  for  Astronomy  

•     

Light  Pollu9on  is  Bad  for  Astronomy  

•     

Light  Pollu9on  from  Satellites  

•  Iridium  constella9on  – 66/75  satellites.  6  polar  orbits.  780  km  – Satellite  phone  service  – Early  models  caused  bright  flares  – 1st  genera9on  1997-­‐2002,  2nd  genera9on  2017+  

•  Starlink  Constella9on  (SpaceX)  – Up  to  42,000  satellites  eventually,  417  now  – Global  broadband/internet  coverage  – Goal  to  reduce  reflec9vity  

•     

Light  Pollu9on  is  Bad  for  Everyone  

We  have  evolved  with  an  ~24  hour  Circadian  Rhythm  •  This  regulates  

– Metabolism    –  Body  temperature  –  Sleep/wake  cycles  – Melatonin  produc9on    

•  The  clock  is  reset  daily  by  sunlight  •  Exposure  to  bright  lights  at  night  can  reset  the  clock    

Adapted from Lockley & Gooley, Curr Biol 2006

¼  

§  Regulates  10%  of  all  human  genes    

§  core  body  temperature  §  sleep/wake  cycle  §  physical  ac9vity  §  hunger  and  appe9te  §  metabolism  §  hormone  produc9on  (e.g.,  melatonin)  

§  expression  of  the  circadian  genes  

§  Immune  adjunct  

Circadian  Rhythmicity    

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Some  Defini9ons  •  Color  temperature  (CCT)  

–  Basically  the  ra9o  of  red  to  blue  light  –  The  Sun  has  a  color  temperature  of  5800K  –  LED  lights  typically  3000  or  4000K    

•  LUX  (unit  of  illuminance)  –  1  lux  =  1  lumen/m2  

–  Direct  Sunlight:  32000-­‐100,000  lux  –  Overcast  day:  ~1000  lux  –  Typical  living  room:  ~50  lux  (1998)  –  Full  moon:  0.03-­‐0.5  lux  –  Airglow:  0.002  lux  –  Starlight:  0.0001  lux  

•  Luminosity  Func;on  –  Human  visual  response  

•  Blue  Light  Hazard  Func;on  –  Light  which  causes  re9nal  damage  in  rats  

Wavelength  Distribu9on  

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Melatonin  

•  Produced  only  at  night  •  Bright  lights  suppress  melatonin  produc9on  •  Blue  light  suppresses  more  than  red  light  •  Suppression  hinders  immune  system  

Melatonin  •  monoamine  hormone  

–  pineal  gland  –  strong  daily  rhythm  

•  low  during  day  •  high  at  night  

•  mood  &  depression  •  reproduc9ve  physiology  -­‐  an9gonadotropic?  •  fights  breast  cancer?  

–  inhibits  breast  cancer  in  rats  –  slows  human  breast  cancer  cells  in  culture  –  Prostate  CA  –  Melatonin  suppressed  by  blue  light  

NOCH3

N

O

C

CH2

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Outdoor  ligh9ng  is  Becoming  LED  

•  High  efficiency  (low  cost  to  operate)  •  Less  maintenance  •  Fades  rather  than  failing  catastophically  

 Blue-­‐Rich  LED  Spectral  Distribu;on:  

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Blue  light  is  Bad  

•  Affects  Circadian  rhythms  and  health  •  Causes  Sleep  depriva9on  •  Correlated  with  breast  cancer  •  Causes  glare  at  night  •  May  accelerate  aging  

Peter  James,  Kimberly  A.  Bertrand,  Jaime  E.  Hart,  Eva  Schernhammer,  Rulla  M.  Tamimi,  Francine  Laden,Outdoor  (  2017  )    Light  at  Night  and  Breast  Cancer  

Incidence  in  the  Nurses’  Health  Study  II,”    Environmental  Health  Perspec3ves,  August  doi:  10.1289/EHP935  

 

•  Comprehensive  Longitudinal  study  1989  –  2013  •  110K  women  NURSES  STUDY        •  Women  exposed  to  the  highest  levels  of  outdoor  light  at  night—

those  in  the  top  fiEh—had  an  es9mated  14%  increased  risk  of  breast  cancer  during  the  study  period,  as  compared  with  women  in  the  bo?om  fiEh  of  exposure…  As  levels  of  outdoor  light  at  night  increased,  so  did  breast  cancer  rates.-­‐    

•  h?ps://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-­‐releases/outdoor-­‐light-­‐night-­‐breast-­‐cancer/  

2016  Emerging  Research      

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

 Sleep  Research    

•  Shorter  sleep  dura9on    •  delayed  bed9me  and  wake  up  

9me    •  increased  day9me  sleepiness  

increased    •  likelihood  of  having  a  

diagnos9c  profile  congruent  with  a  circadian  rhythm  disorder    

CONCLUSIONS:  “nighsme  lights  in  our  streets  and  ci9es  are  clearly  linked  with  modifica9ons  in  human  sleep  behaviors  and  also  impinge  on  the  day9me  func9oning  of  individuals  living  in  areas  with  greater  ONL”.   Ohayon  MM  et.al(  2016  )  Ar;ficial  Outdoor  NighWme  Lights  

Associated  with  Altered  Sleep  Behavior  in  the  American  General  Popula;on  SLEEP  Jun;39(6):1311-­‐20  doi:  10.5665/sleep/5860    

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

GLARE  Response:  Disability  and  Discomfort  

Physical  and  central  nervous  system  response  to  light  induced  ocular  stress          

Medical  Perspec;ve    

Photostress  response  involving:      Sympathe9c  and  parasympathe9c    Pupillary    light  reflex  Blink  reflex      Accommoda9on  –convergence  reflex  Miosis    

ü  Reduc9on  in  situa9onal  awareness      

ü  Poten9al  for  loss  of  balance  and  concentra9on  

ü  Age  related  impacts    

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Light  Pollu9on  affects  Human  Health*  •   Interferes  with  circadian  rhythms  •  Air  and  water  pollu9on  related  health  problems  •  Melatonin  suppression  inhibits  immune  system  •  Sleep  disturbances  •  Suspected  in  rise  in  childhood  leukemia  •  Glare  into  roadways  creates  dangerous  condi9ons  for  drivers  and  pedestrians  

•  Loss  of  our  natural  nocturnal  environment  contributes  to  loss  of  connec9on  to  nature  and  the  inspira9on  of  a  star  filled  night  sky  

* Researchers: Blask, Pauley, Brainard, Rea, Schernhammer, Crain

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Light  Pollu9on  is  Bad  for  Other  Life  

•  All  animals  have  circadian  rhythms  •  Insects  are  especially  impaired  

– Moths  are  strongly  a?racted  to  light  –  Fireflies  cannot  find  mates  in  light  –  Some  insects  need  natural  polarized  light  –  Light  helps  predators  find  prey  

•  Fish  migra9on  is  affected  •  Affects  bird  migra9on  •  Ar9ficial  light  misleads  baby  sea  turtles  

Blue  light  at  night  is  bad  for  wildlife  

Millions  of  birds  killed/year   Animals  confused,  imperiled  by  LAN  

62%  fewer  visits  by  pollinators  Fireflies  threatened  

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

 Knop,E  et.al  (2017)  Ar;ficial  light  at  night  as  a  new  threat  to  pollina;on.  Nature  Aug  10;548(7666):206-­‐209.  doi:  10.1038/nature23288.  Epub  2017  Aug  2.    

§  62%  reduc9on  of  nocturnal  visits  fruit  trees  as  compared  to  dark  areas    

§  Resulted  in  an  overall  13%  reduc9on  in  fruit  set  

Birds  play  an  important  role  in  our  food  chain  and  balance  of  nature    §  Elimina9on  of  human  pests        §  Major  pollinators  for  worldwide  crops:  up  

to  75%  of  food  chain  and  also  for  crops  used  for  biofuels,  fibers,  construc9on  materials,  medicine  and  livestock  feed    

§  16.5%  are  threatened  with  ex9nc9on  

Ar;ficial  light  at  night  (ALAN)  contributes  to  an  es;mated  10  to  40  million  US  bird  deaths  

   LAN  impacts  on  Human  Food  Pollina;on      

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

§  Class  of  2000  aqua9c  insects    

§   Freshwater  food  source:  fish,  dragonfly  nymphs,  and  birds.  

 §  Considered  a  strong  

biological  indicator  for  water  quality        

MAYFLIES:  a_rac;on  for  blue-­‐rich  light  sources    

CREDIT:  WKBT  La  Crosse  Wisconsin      

Die  off  impacts  humans:        §  Declining  fresh  water  fish  

food  source      

§  Driving  hazard  due  to  roadway  swarming  insects  

 §  Pedestrian  hazard  due  to  

slippery  and  massive  uneven  surfaces  once  they  die              

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Environmental  Impacts  from  LAN    •  Plants  (trees,  soy  beans,  budding,  crop  yields)  •  Insects  (reproduc9on,  disrup9on,  pollina9on)  •  Birds  (migra9on,  foraging,  sleep  cycle  disrup9on)  •  Fish(  preda9on,  reproduc9on  and  life  cycle  disrup9ons)          

•  Faint  skyglow  affects  60%  invertebrates,  30%  vertebrates  

 “If  a  ligh9ng  environmental  effect  on  a  par9cular  species  has  not  yet  been  documented  its  probably  because  it  has  not  yet  been  studied.  In  every  case  where  a  study  has  been  performed,  an  effect  has  been  determined  !!”  Nature,  Jan  16,2018,      Travis  longcore  

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

AMA  Opinions  and  Resolu9ons  

2009  AMA  Council  of  Sciences  and  Health  Resolu;on  

  RESOLVED That our AMA develop and enact a policy that supports light-pollution reduction efforts and glare-reduction efforts at both the national and state levels; and be it further RESOLVED That our AMA support that all future streetlights will be of a fully shielded design or similar non-glare design to improve the safety of our roadways for all, but especially vision impaired and older drivers.

Excessive light pollution comprises an inefficient use of energy and is a public health hazard for drivers, as well as an environmental disruption for several species.   

AMA  Policy  –  H27-­‐135.932  Advocates  for  light  pollu;on  control  and  reduced  glare  from  (electric)  ar;ficial  light  sources  to  both  protect  public  safety  and  

conserve  energy    

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

2012  AMA  CSAPH  Rep.  4-­‐A-­‐12.    "Light  Pollu9on:  Adverse  Health  Effects  of  Nighsme  Ligh9ng".    Ac9on  of  the  AMA  House  of  Delegates  2012  Annual  

Mee9ng:  Council  on  Science  and  Public  Health  Report  4  Recommenda9ons.    

§  Supports  the  need  for  developing  and  implemen;ng  technologies  to  reduce  glare  from  vehicle  headlamps  and  

roadway  ligh;ng  schemes  and  developing  ligh;ng  technologies  at  home  and  at  work  that  minimize  circadian  

disrup;on  while  maintaining  visual  efficiency      

§  Recognizes  that  exposure  to  excessive  light  at  night,  including  extended  use  of  various  electronic  media,  can  disrupt  sleep  or  exacerbate  sleep  disorders,  especially  in  children  and  adolescents.  This  effect  can  be  minimized  by  using  dim  red  ligh9ng  in  the  nighsme  bedroom  environment..  

§  Supports  the  need  for  further  mul9disciplinary  research  on  the  risks  and  benefits  of  occupa9onal  and  environmental  exposure  to  light-­‐at-­‐night.  That  work  environments  opera9ng  in  a  24/7  hour  fashion  have  an  employee  fa9gue  risk  management  plan  in  place.    

David  Blask,  PhD,  MD  Tulane  George  Brainard,  PhD  Thomas  Jefferson    Ronald  Gibbons,  PhD      Virginia  Tech  Steven  Lockley,  PhD  Harvard      Richard  Stevens,  PhD      Univ  Connec3cut  Mario  Mo?a,  MD    TuDs    

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Genesis  of  AMA  2016  report    §  IES  acted  as  if  2012  didn’t  happen    §  Accelera9ng  race  to  push  higher  CCT  LED  ligh9ng  into  the  marketplace.  §  4  years  since  the  2012  report:  no  meaningful  industry  acceptance  to  

3000K  and  lower  streetligh9ng.  §  Increasing  scien9fic,  targeted  medical,  and  epidemiological  evidence:  

human  health  problems  exacerbated  by  blue  light  at  night    §  Moun9ng  evidence:  nega9ve  environmental  impacts  for  a  wide  range  

of  species  it’s  impact  on  human  health  and  wellbeing      §  Con9nuing  marke9ng  efforts  to  promote  LED  ligh9ng  as  providing  

health  benefits  with  no  FDA  or  equivalent  review  and  approval    §  Failure  of  industry  and  local  communi9es  to  adequately  explore  human  

health  and  environmental  research  before  widespread  use    §  Failure  of  Industry  to  issue  preliminary    guidelines  on  the  use  of  LAN  

even  with  the  numerous  references  provided  by  the  authors  of  the  2012  report    (126  peer  reviews  papers)  

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

 

Human  and  Environmental  Effects  of  Light  EmiWng  Diode  (LED)  Community  

Ligh;ng,  6/2016,  CSAPH  

•  That  our  American  Medical  Associa9on  (AMA)  support  the  proper  conversion  to  community-­‐based  Light  Emisng  Diode  (LED)  ligh9ng,  which  reduces  energy  consump9on  and  decreases  the  use  of  fossil  fuels.  (New  HOD  Policy)  

•  That  our  AMA  encourage  minimizing  and  controlling  blue-­‐rich  environmental  ligh9ng  by  using  the  lowest  emission  of  blue  light  possible  to  reduce  glare.  (New  HOD  Policy)    

•  That  our  AMA  encourage  the  use  of  3000K  or  lower  ligh;ng  for  outdoor  installa;ons  such  as  roadways.  All  LED  ligh;ng  should  be  properly  shielded  to  minimize  glare  and  detrimental  human  and  environmental  effects,  and  considera;on  should  be  given  to  u;lize  the  ability  of  LED  ligh;ng  to  be  dimmed  for  off-­‐peak  ;me  periods.  (New  HOD  Policy)  

AMA  Policy:      

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

States  with  LP  laws  

§  Arizona,  Arkansas,  California,    

§  Colorado,  Connec;cut,  Delaware  

§  Hawaii,  Maine,  Michigan,    

§  Minnesota,  Montana,  New  Hampshire  

§  New  Mexico,  Rhode  Island,  Texas  

§  Vermont,  Virginia,  Wyoming  

Ci9es  requiring  3000K  or  lower  

•  New  York  City  •  Chicago  •  San  Francisco  •  Los  Angeles  •  San  Diego  •  Tucson  •  Phoenix  •  Toronto  •  Montreal  •  Davis  

Why  all  the  debate  when  ci;zens  prefer  warmer  light  at  night?    

From  Mario  Mo?a,  MD  

Good  News  

For  More  Informa9on  

•  The  Interna9onal  Dark  Sky  Associa9on  – h?ps://www.darksky.org/  

•  Florida  Atlan9c  University  Observatory    – h?p://cescos.fau.edu/observatory/lightpol-­‐environ.html