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42 cities and municipalities are participating in “Earth Night” in Austria.
The environmental umbrella organization is calling the so-called “Earth Night” in Austria on Friday for the fourth time. The action intends to draw attention to light pollution and its adverse effects on biodiversity and human health. In a statement, the NGO called on the federal government to launch a nationwide energy-saving package.
Signs against light pollution
Among them are the provincial capitals of Salzburg, Linz, Graz, Eisenstadt, and Klagenfurt. After dark, a signal against light pollution is to be set, among other things, by switching off all or part of the street lighting.
“Too much artificial night light irritates nocturnal animals, such as owls and bats, kills hundreds of billions of insects per year, and fuels species extinction,” Environmental Umbrella Organisation managing director Gerald Pfifinger said. “The loss of darkness also disrupts people’s ‘internal clock,’ which can cause health and sleep problems. Moreover, unnecessary energy consumption through night lighting is unjustifiable because of the climate crisis,” it said. Yet no current environmental problem could be curbed as quickly and with such an immediate effect as light pollution, Pfiffinger criticized.
“Godfathers of the night” called “Earth Night” into being
Earth Night” was launched by the German nature conservation initiative “Godfathers of the Night” to combat “too much artificial light at night and the ever-increasing illumination of the sky” as a result. Every year, Earth Night takes place on the Friday in September, closest to the night of the new moon. That day will once again mark the annual global climate strike this year.
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