SLC converting street lights to make them energy efficient, dark sky friendly

SALT LAKE CITY — Thousands of street lights across the city are being converted to be more energy efficient and dark sky friendly.

"Sky glow, coming from large cities like this, is a significant contributor to the decreasing of the night sky," said David Pearson, the street lighting manager for Salt Lake City Public Utilities. "So we are installing dark sky friendly lights with the top shields on them so the LEDs you can see are pointed straight down."

It's a lengthy process that is under way in neighborhoods across the city. Salt Lake City Public Utilities maintains more than 16,000 street lights (and more being added as the city grows). The city started converting street lights to LED bulbs several years ago for energy savings.

"Converting to led not only is better for the environment in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, there's a cost savings to the public, too," said Laura Briefer, Salt Lake City Public Utilities director.

That conversion alone cut the city's monthly power bill from $90,000 to $40,000. But in the process, the agency heard from some less-than-happy homeowners about the new, energy efficient bulbs.

"It was very bright and way too bright," Pearson said.

It prompted the city to tweak the color temperature and the brightness. In the process, Briefer said, they started adding shielding to make the area more dark sky friendly. It's part of a lighting master plan approved by the Salt Lake City Council.

"Right now, it's not costing anything more," Briefer said.

Pearson said the switch also does not negatively impact public safety.

"Actually, we're increasing public safety as the light is being better used. We’re getting more light on the sidewalk and the roadway where it can be better used," he said.

The new LED lighting with the shielding focuses light directly onto sidewalks and streets, instead of blasting everyone with it. In some neighborhoods, the city has experimented with smaller, pedestrian-style lights instead of massive "cobra style" lights that stretch over a street.

Studies have shown that light pollution can have a negative impact on human health and wildlife. As a state, Utah has embraced "dark skies" and a return to nighttime star-gazing, with a number of communities and outdoor recreation areas becoming certified by the International Dark Sky Association. While Salt Lake City might never achieve that, Briefer said this can help improve quality of life.

Jesus Alfaro, who lives next to a newly redesigned street light in Rose Park, said it was an improvement for his neighborhood.

"We're really delighted because it's illuminates the whole space on the sidewalk and it's bright at night," he said. "But at the same time, on top it makes it focus on the sidewalk."

Salt Lake City Public Utilities estimates it will take about five years to convert all the city's street lights. Briefer said she would also like to see the effort continue in the city's Northwest Quadrant, a booming area of industrial development near the Great Salt Lake, which is a refuge for millions of migratory birds.

While the effort is being done by the city on public infrastructure, Briefer said she would like to see private homes and commercial and industrial businesses take a look at their own lighting to make it dark sky friendly.

"I think if you have both the public way of lighting and the private lighting moving in that direction, yes, there will the ability to see more stars and also protect our wildlife and environment," she said.

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