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Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School
Eduarda Leal (8th grade)
Dark Skies Rangers 2014




Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School - Dark Skies Rangers 2014

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Index

1. Light pollution ...........................................................................................................................................2
2. Lighting audit of the school ....................................................................................................................4
3. Letter to the schools Director ................................................................................................................6
4. References ...............................................................................................................................................7





Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School - Dark Skies Rangers 2014

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1. Light pollution

When we are in a very big building, like a football stadium, in a street or in a park, we have to take
into account that the lights used in the illumination can damage the environment, causing light
pollution, when they are directed to the sky.

This light prevents people from seeing the beauty of the sky at night, because with this pollution
we can't see the stars, causes stress and sleep disorders in people, and prejudices the animal
life, disorienting and disturbing the animals, like turtles and birds.












Fig. 1 - In the left image we can see a dark sky without light pollution.
In the right image we can see the light pollution in the environment.


The sea turtles like do their nests in really dark beaches and the
coastal lights interfere in their ability of find safe nesting areas for
their eggs. The young turtle creep to the ocean due to the
luminosity and the reflection of the moon and stars in the water.
For centuries this reflection was the most brilliant point of light at
the beach. The artificial lights can confuse the young turtle and
they can creep far of the ocean to the roads or the communities.
If they don't find their way to the ocean they can get exhausted or
dehydrated and die.

Fig. 2 - Sea turtle.
Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School - Dark Skies Rangers 2014

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The intense lights of the cities and villages can prejudice the
mammals all over the world through the loss of their nightimes
ecosystem. Examples of affected mammals are bats,
raccoons, coyotes, dears and mooses. This species can be
subject to:
A decline in the reproduction and in the population;
Difficulty of finding food;
Exposure to the predators;
An increase in death due to the impairment of the vision.

Fig. 3 Moose.

Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School - Dark Skies Rangers 2014

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2. Lighting audit of the school

The Manuel Figueiredo School is situated in Torres Novas, Portugal, and is participating in the
Comenius project Dive in the Sky, with schools from Austria, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Turkey.

For this project, I decided to do a work about the light pollution in my school. In this work, I took
photos of the school lamps and created a map with their location (http://goo.gl/KygnNF).










Fig. 4 The lamps of Manuel Figueiredo School.











Fig. 5 The Manuel Figueiredo School map with the
location of the lamps.



Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School - Dark Skies Rangers 2014

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At my school there are several problems with the lamps:
The wasted energy;
The light dispersion to the sky;
They are located next to trees, so the birds can be disturbed;
The excessive number of lamps (25);
Some of them are in bad condition.

This problems can be solved by removing some lamps and replacing the old lamps with new
lamps, which don't release light to the sky and direct the light only where we need it. Other solution
is to cover the top of the lamp with a material that reflects the light to the ground.
Fig. 6 Good lamps for the human health and environment.


Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School - Dark Skies Rangers 2014

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3. Letter to the schools Director

I decided to write a letter to the schools Director, to inform him about the bad lamps in our school
and how is possible to solve the light pollution problem. I also asked permission to analyze the
plan of the new school, which will be constructed in the same location.

Here is the content of my letter:

I hereby inform that the Manuel Figueiredo School has two serious problems with the lighting.
One of this problems is the format of the lamp, because the protection of the light is transparent
and the light is dispersed to the sky, causing light pollution. The lamps should have a kind of iron
or aluminum cap, which would prevent the light dispersion to the sky.
The other problem is the number of lamps in the school, that being 25, can be reduced.
For this two reasons, when the new school is built, I request that the number of lamps can be
reduced and that you install a system that directs the light to the ground. I also ask permission to
analyze the plan of the new school. Building the new school with good lamps, we are protecting
the environment and contributing to be an Eco-School increasingly ecologic and sustainable.
Thanks for the attention and I am waiting for a positive answer to my request, I bid farewell with
the best wishes.


Light pollution in Manuel Figueiredo School - Dark Skies Rangers 2014

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4. References

http://dsr.nuclio.pt/poluicao-luminosa-e-vida-selvagem
http://startravelling.theritz.nl/files/2010/10/pow94.jpg
http://www.portaldoastronomo.org/dsr/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/repteis.png
http://www.portaldoastronomo.org/dsr/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/alce.png
http://www.landscapeonline.com/research/lasn/2008/04/img/DarkSky/side-7.jpg
http://benkolstad.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Ellicott_installed.jpg
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-
BWBLltwTIU/S7DFIUtQe4I/AAAAAAAABJw/KV7RRFSglTk/s1600/dialight_streetlight.jpg
http://apagarasluzeseacenderasestrelas.wikispaces.com/file/view/auditoria_iluminacao_publica_casalj
oaodias_valeserra_paialvo_marruas.pdf/342749694/auditoria_iluminacao_publica_casaljoaodias_vale
serra_paialvo_marruas.pdf