On April 8th, the Middle Tennessee Group for Sierra Club presented a program featuring Joseph M Boyd Jr and Metro At-Large Council Member Burkley Allen discussing the effects of light pollution and plans to reduce it in Davidson County.

Sierra Club of Middle Tennessee Group’s April Program highlighted the world-wide issue of light pollution.   It may seem harmless, but light pollution has far-reaching consequences that are harmful to all living things. Our guest presenters were Joseph M Boyd Jr and Metro At-Large Council Member Burkley Allen.   They explained how light pollution is affecting insects, birds, and wildlife.  They described impact on how 24-hour lighting effects our health and why it is a waste of money and energy.  This continuous lighting is also blocking our view of the universe and interfering with our ability to see the stars. 

A YouTube video of the program has been posted for your review. The program mentions several helpful links to information about light pollution and the efforts to reduce it.

• Davidson County Parks - http://maps.nashville.gov/NashvilleParksFinder/
• Join the International Dark Sky Association - https://www.darksky.org/

Documentaries

• Saving the Dark | Documentary | Light Pollution [HD] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fHxNn-FEnc
• The devastating impact of light pollution | Alyn Wallace | TEDxAberystwyth - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOZ0dG_NG2k
• Why We Need Darkness | Paul Bogard | TEDxBratislava - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F55wBS2kNNQ
• The City Dark - https://vimeo.com/ondemand/thecitydark (Pay site)

Joseph  M. Boyd, Jr., J.D. was an attorney by profession and is still active as an amateur astronomer.  He's a member of the International Dark Sky Association and is a past president of the Barnard-Seyfert Astronomical Society of Nashville.  

He has studied light pollution over the past several years and will talk about the effects of light pollution on people and wildlife, the waste of energy and natural resources, safety, and economics.

Metro Council Member Burkley Allen sponsored a new bill which utilizes the International Dark Sky Association’s guidelines regarding the design and operation of outdoor electrical lighting to reduce light pollution for new, commercial buildings built in Davidson County. She has stated "It says use only as much light as you need, only point it where you need it, and if you're not using it, turn it off or dim it. That's the basics." burkley.allen@nashville.gov

 Nashville has grown bigger, it has grown brighter.

This bill was approved by the Metropolitan Council on April 6^th, two days prior to our program presentation.   A link to the Bill is below.