Activists call on authorities to tackle light pollution

A group of environmental and heritage NGOs is calling on authorities to tackle light pollution, including publishing long-delayed light pollution guidelines and turning them into enforceable laws.

In a statement Tuesday, the Light Pollution Awareness Group within the Atronomical Society of Malta said that while draft guidelines to reduce light pollution had been prepared by the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA), they had not been formally implemented.

Warning of the dangers to wildlife and human health posed by light pollution, the group stressed that draft guidelines alone were not sufficient to tackle the issue.

The statement was endorsed by 12 NGOs focused on environmental and heritage issues.

The group called for the publication of ERA and Planning Authority guidelines on light pollution and for the establishment of official Dark Sky Heritage areas in Malta to match those in Dwejra, Gozo, and Comino.

All state-owned buildings and infrastructure should be equipped with warm, shielded and non-excessive lighting, with dark-sky-friendly lighting eventually being rolled out to sports complexes, industrial zones and public car parks.

And lighting management plans should be introduced for major light-emitting sites such as the airport, freeport, Gozo Channel terminals and Transport Malta-managed car parks, the group said.

It called for a TV, radio and social media campaign to educate the public about the harm caused by light pollution, which it noted includes increased risk of obesity, sleep disorders, depression, diabetes and breast cancer, and potentially deadly impacts on wildlife.

The topic should also be covered in the education system, the group said.

Financial incentives to replace existing lighting should be made available to businesses and residents, while excessive facade lighting and improperly shielded security lights should be banned.

Meanwhile, “meaningful fines” should be introduced for excessively bright billboards, upward-facing floodlights and especially bright lighting left on throughout the night. Visible LED lights outside the boundary of private property should also be subject to fines.

An independent light pollution authority separate to the police and empowered to conduct inspections, process complaints, issue fines and maintain a registry of open and closed cases should be created, the group said.

Laying out a phased five-year roadmap for introducing the proposals, the group said that successfully implementing it would protect Malta’s night sky, a heritage and environmental asset, and “significantly” reduce light pollution, energy waste and carbon emissions.

Other benefits would include improving pedestrian safety, improving the conditions of nocturnal species, enhancing tourism, astronomical research and enjoyment of the night sky and establishing Malta as a regional leader for sensitive outdoor lighting.

The group urged the finalisation and publication of national light pollution guidelines without delay, and their transposition into enforceable laws.

“Binding standards are essential to ensure consistent implementation, accountability, and long-term effectiveness across all sectors.”

The proposals follow long-running concerns about Dwejra, a Dark Sky Heritage Area. Last year, academics and NGOs called on ministers Clint Camilleri and Miriam Dalli to enforce nighttime blackouts in the area following night pollution from boathouses, kiosks and a nearby quarry.

Draft legislation for how lighting is managed at Dwejra, which proposes switching off artificial lighting between midnight and sunrise, has been opposed by activists, who argue the measure clashes with existing rules banning artificial lighting in the area.

Tuesday’s statement was endorsed by the Foundation for the Conservation of the Maltese Honey Bee, Bee Savers Malta, NatureTrust-FEE Malta, Birdlife Malta, Din l-Art Helwa, Wirt Għawdex, Għawdix, Moviment Graffitti, Malta Regional Development and Dialogue Foundation, Friends of the Earth Malta, Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar and the Ramblers’ Association of Malta.