On Wed, 10 Nov 2004 12:18:43 -0500, TeamCasa wrote:

"Charlie Self"
In a recent vacation to Kona Hawaii, I was struck by the lack of light
in the evenings. It didn't take long to figure out that the whole
island has a light restriction. The Keck Observatory. It really was
nice, compared to the virtual daylight of LA.

Palomar,North of San Diego also has light restrictions, but not nearly
the scale of the big island.

Dave

The light restrictions on the big island are certainly true. However,
both Kona and Hilo still send a large quantity of light upwards. I've
conducted astronomical observations several times a year over the past few
years on the summit of Mauna Kea, and can vouch that both Kona and Hilo
are quite bright at night. They certainly are not as bright as other
cities of the same size that don't have light restrictions. But it is
becoming a problem at the observatory. Waimea and Honokaa are also quite
visible from the summit.

What people seem to not understand is that lighting the sky does not
provide added ground level security and also wastes energy. Using smartly
designed lights that direct all of their light downward can make the
street level considerably brighter and safer, while significantly reducing
sky brightness and energy usage. Unfortunately, these light fixtures are
generally more expensive up front, which seems to trump their long term
energy efficiency benefits in most consumers minds.

Chad