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Gaston, K. J., Gaston, S., Bennie, J., & Hopkins, J. (2015). Benefits and costs of artificial nighttime lighting of the environment. Environ. Rev., 23(1), 14–23.
Abstract: Artificial lighting has transformed the outdoor nighttime environment over large areas, modifying natural cycles of light in terms of timing, wavelength, and distribution. This has had widespread benefits and costs to humankind, impacting on health and wellbeing, vehicle accidents, crime, energy consumption and carbon emissions, aesthetics, and wildlife and ecosystems. Here, we review these effects, particularly in the context of ongoing developments in the extent of artificial lighting and in the prevalent technologies being employed. The key issue that emerges is how best to maximize the benefits of artificial nighttime lighting whilst limiting the costs. To do so, three main strategies are required. First, important knowledge gaps need to be filled. Second, there is an urgent need to connect the research being conducted in different disciplines, which to date has been very disjointed. Third, it is imperative that much firmer and well-developed links are made between research, policy, and practice.
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Gibson J., Olivia S., & Boe‐Gibson G. (2020). Night Lights In Economics: Sources And Uses. Journal of Economic Surveys, , in press.
Abstract: Night lights, as detected by satellites, are increasingly used by economists, typically as a proxy for economic activity. The growing popularity of these data reflects either the absence, or the presumed inaccuracy, of more conventional economic statistics, like national or regional GDP. Further growth in use of night lights is likely, as they have been included in the AidData geoquery tool for providing subnational data, and in geographic data that the Demographic and Health Survey links to anonymized survey enumeration areas. Yet, this ease of obtaining night lights data may lead to inappropriate use, if users fail to recognize that most of the satellites providing these data were not designed to assist economists, and have features that may threaten validity of analyses based on these data, especially for temporal comparisons, and for small and rural areas. In this paper, we review sources of satellite data on night lights, discuss issues with these data, and survey some of their uses in economics.
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Gibson J., Olivia S., & Boe-Gibson G. (2019). A Test of DMPS and VIIRS Night Lights Data for Estimating GDP and Spatial Inequality for Rural and Urban Areas. Working Paper in Economics, 19(11).
Abstract: Night lights, as detected by satellites, are increasingly used by economists, especially to proxy for economic activity in poor countries. Widely used data from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) have several flaws; blurring, top-coding, lack of calibration, and variation in sensor amplification that impairs comparability over time and space. These flaws are not present in newer data from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) that is widely used in other disciplines. Economists have been slow to switch to these better VIIRS data, perhaps because flaws in DMSP are rarely emphasized. We show the relationship between night lights and Indonesian GDP at the second sub-national level for 497 spatial units. The DMSP data are not a suitable proxy for GDP outside of cities. Within the urban sector, the lights-GDP relationship is twice as noisy using DMSP as using VIIRS. Spatial inequality is considerably understated by the DMSP data. A Pareto adjustment to correct for top-coding in DMSP data has a modest effect but still understates spatial inequality and misses much of the intra-city heterogeneity in the brightness of lights for Jakarta.
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Grove, L. (2016). Reducing Acadia's Light Pollution. Master's thesis, University of Virginia, Charlottesville.
Abstract: Acadia National Park is among the most visited national parks in the United States, attracting millions of people per year. Thousands of those visitors come to the park for “astro-tourism,” as Acadia has become one of the premier stargazing locations on the east coast. There remains, however, the continued threat from light pollution from the surrounding communities that negatively affects Acadia's darkness, contributing to a lesser visitor experience and potentially harming native ecosystems. Although park management and community organizations have engaged in significant efforts to decrease Acadia's nighttime light levels and raise awareness among visitors and locals regarding the importance of darkness, the park still seek to continue to decrease light pollution. This report developed policy options that could help solve the long-term policy goal of decreasing nighttime lighting levels within and around Acadia while also using the International Dark-Sky Association's Dark-Sky Park designation requirements as a reasonable, short-term policy benchmark.
Working within existing organizations, the policy options crafted to address Acadia’s nighttime lighting levels were analyzed both qualitatively through a criteria evaluation and quantitatively through a Benefit Cost Analysis.
The options included 1) the formation of a Darkness Coalition within the League of Towns, 2) a reimagining of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute Dark-Sky Project into the Dark-Sky Taskforce, 3) the creation of a Lighting Consultant position paid through the Friends of Acadia Wild Acadia initiative, and 4) the combination of Coalition and the Taskforce into the League of Towns – Dark-Sky Partnership (LOT-DSP). The report recommends the adoption of Option 4 – the creation of the LOT – DSP. While this option does not provide the greatest estimated monetary net value compared to the Status Quo in the quantitative evaluation, it still provides an estimated benefit of about $105 million over the course of five years and is the strongest option in the qualitative analysis. The LOT – DSP provides the best opportunity for Acadia to achieve legitimate and long-lasting nighttime light level reduction.
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Hammerschlag, N., Meyer, C. G., Grace, M. S., Kessel, S. T., Sutton, T. T., Harvey, E. S., et al. (2017). Shining a light on fish at night: an overview of fish and fisheries in the dark of night, and in deep and polar seas. bms, 93(2), 253–284.
Abstract: In aquatic environments, what one observes during the day can differ substantially by night. The species composition and associated ecological processes that occur during the day are often different than night. In polar seas and at great depths, “night” can span, months, years, and beyond. Teleosts and elasmobranchs have evolved unique sensory and behavioral modalities for living in darkness. As a consequence, fishers have adopted unique strategies for exploiting fish at night or in dark systems. We propose that neglecting the night has led to an incomplete understanding of aquatic organismal ecology, population/community dynamics, and ecosystem function with consequences for fisheries conservation management. To address this knowledge gap and stimulate the exchange of new data and ideas on behaviors, patterns, and processes relating to fish and fisheries in darkness, Fish at Night: an international symposium was held in Miami, Florida (USA), from 18 to 20 November, 2015. Here, we synthesize the findings from the symposium, providing an overview on the state-of-knowledge of fish studies in the dark, identifying critical information gaps, and charting a course for future research. We focus our commentary and synthesis on six areas: (1) nocturnal fish behavior and ecology; (2) fishing, fisheries, and enforcement; (3) deep and polar seas; (4) diel fish distribution and abundance comparisons; (5) methods for studying fish in darkness; (6) human threats to fish at night; and (7) larval fish at night. Taken together, we attempt to “shine a light” on fish at night, generating a greater interest and understanding of fishes and fisheries during darkness.
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