Excessive lights at night darken our skies with pollution during the day, writes June Ng.

For Hongkongers, dark skies at night can seem like a long-forgotten pleasure. Our natural, star-lit evenings have gradually been replaced by artificially lit ones. There are some who think this is a good thing, that no matter how unnatural or tacky it may appear, we need to keep Hong Kong shining to uphold our illustrious image as the Pearl of the Orient. But others say our 24-7 light habits are harming the city in ways that outweigh any of their supposed benefits.

Unlike other kinds of pollution that we’re already familiar with, light pollution—which comes in the form of energy wastage, disturbance to the public and hindrance to astronomical observation—is still something many of us are less than ready to address. This is partly because Hongkongers tend to see brightness as a symbol of wealth and status, a mindset that Hahn Chu, environmental affairs manager of Friends of the Earth (FoE), believes has to change. Chu draws attention to the flagrant misuse of light by malls and luxury-brand shops. “We shouldn’t use lights to try and prove value, and brands shouldn’t use the brightness of shops and signboards to compete with each other. That’s just blindly materialistic,” he says. He adds that the problem has gradually been growing worse since 1998, when the regulation of city lights was cancelled after the closure of Kai Tak International Airport. The trend has been reflected by a rise in complaint figures. According to the Environmental Protection Department, the number of complaints from January to September this year is 25 percent higher than that of last year.

FoE’s latest campaign, called “Ghost Haunted Central,” highlighted the ludicrousness of the situation with two short clips on YouTube that displayed blinding lights shining through Central after midnight, giving the area the eerie appearance of a high-end ghost town. The group singled out Louis Vuitton in particular, calling the brand hypocritical for trying to cultivate an environmentally friendly image at the same time. “They publicized their sponsorship of Climate Project, and spent a great deal on celebrities to promote it. But in fact they can’t even fulfill the basic requirement—using fewer lights.”   

But how bright is too bright? Professor Henry Chung, an expert in “smart lighting” management systems from the Department of Engineering at City University, explains that for streets on normal nights, the brightness level should be between 100-200 lux, and 400-600 lux in working environments. But findings in city areas such as Mong Kok, Causeway Bay and Yau Ma Tei were way above this, with one—Sai Yeung Choi Street pedestrian zone in Mong Kok—exhibiting levels reaching 4,000 lux. 

As a result, excess lighting is responsible for tremendous increases in energy consumption, and hence more greenhouse gases. It also has significant effects on humans and animals in everyday life. Professor Chung shares a real case that he once witnessed: “I saw an old lady who was standing by the road for so long and wouldn’t cross it, and I asked if there was a problem. It turned out that she couldn’t see if the green traffic light was on because of the interference from a flashing red and green neon-light signboard.” He adds that this does not even begin to address the nuisance caused to residents and wildlife who live close to such light sources. Such disturbance occurs as far as Mai Po. According to its assistant reserve officer Katherine Leung, light pollution has been severely affecting the sleeping pattern of the birds, keeping some species squawking away all night. This has in turn drawn complaints from residents at nearby Fairview Park about noise levels.
So the big question: should we dim the lights? In a survey by FoE last year, over 70 percent of interviewees thought advertising panels, signboards and outdoor spotlights were too bright. But what would dimming them all do to our image as a tourist hub? Would Hong Kong lose some of its vital color? Nick is an Australian tourist visiting Hong Kong for the first time, and is a bit shocked by the brightness of the city. “I didn’t even know it was 7:30pm already,” he says. “I’m a little depressed that I can’t see any stars here. I didn’t just come to Hong Kong for glamorous night lights.” However, mainland tourist Mr. Lo thinks fewer lights would make Hong Kong less beautiful. “The night will be less attractive. It’ll be like a dead city; I don’t think I’d go to the Peak at all.” On this note, FoE stresses that they’re not against the use of lights, but just against excessive use of lights, which turns Hong Kong into a “giant lightbulb with low energy efficiency.”

Fortunately, thanks to the efforts of pressure groups, some changes are starting to be made, with some big-name stores in the city—most notably Windsor House, a mall previously voted champion of ridiculous lighting in one poll, and Prada—dimming their lights at quieter night hours. Even the Tourism Commission, who refused to join the past two lights-out events on the grounds that it would hurt Hong Kong’s image, say they plan to join the one next year by stopping the light show for the night. The Environment Bureau also says they’ll look into the possibility of having legislation on regulating external lighting next year, as the chief executive mentioned in the latest policy address. Nonetheless, a natural, unpolluted dark sky in Hong Kong still remains beyond sight for the time being.