Light pollution costs €300k annually

Light pollution costs hundreds of thousands of euro each year, impacting environmental processes and affecting our health, an Irish physics expert claims.

Prof Brian Espey at Trinity College Dublin is heading up a team which aims to protect our skies as part of our natural heritage.

There are 420,000 street lights across the country, accounting for 15%-35% of local authorities’ energy use — at an annual cost of €29m.