When LED was invented, it was hailed as an improvement because not only did it consume less kilowatts, it also lessened the carbon emissions produced by the power plants, compared to an incandescent bulb.

Because it was cheap to use, people tend to overuse them and over-illuminate areas. But without proper shielding, LED bulbs cause large amounts of wasted light in all directions. In urban cities, there’s too much light wasted that it’s already difficult to see the night sky.

Without realizing it, we’ve polluted the night sky with light.

The International Dark-Sky Association defines light pollution as “the inappropriate or excessive use of artificial light.” That can take many forms, including glare, or excessive brightness; sky glow, which drowns out the night sky over urban areas; light trespass, or stray light falling where it is not needed; and clutter, or confusing groups of bright light sources.

In fact, a 2016 study showed that an estimate of 99 percent of the continental United States and Europe experience some amount of light pollution. And while this situation depresses astronomers who can no longer see the stars clearly, that’s only the least problematic part.

Even more worrying is the fact that the LED’s lightwaves can have a negative effect on humans and their environment.

Our dependence on artificial lighting will always remain. But by using it responsibly, we can minimize its negative effects on the environment.

— Derek Dodds, Wave Tribe Founder

Out on the waters, a similar thing happens to the marine wildlife. That’s because blue light penetrates more deeply into the waters because it has a shorter wavelength. That’s why it can disrupt marine ecosystems the most.

Scientists have discovered that LED light from the oil rigs, passing ships and harbors may prevent important species from rooting in the seafloor. Species like sea squirt and sea bristle are critically important in a marine ecosystem because they keep it healthy by sucking plankton and circulating the nutrients in the water. But they don’t like blue light and so when they shy away from the light, they lower the quality of the ocean water.

At the same time, the LED light may draw species that cause chaos for humans and underwater structures, like barnacles. Barnacle infestation actually costs countries around the world more than $303 million a year in damages.

LED lighting also wreaks havoc on the night cycles of marine animals. Nemo the clownfish can’t raise his younglings when he’s exposed to LED lighting. This has severe consequences for local fish populations because a zero percent hatching can essentially cause extinction in a species.

On beaches, light pollution can also disorient baby sea turtles causing them to beach themselves instead of swimming towards the sea.

Sea turtle hatchlings use the moonlight reflected off the waves to help them find their way to the sea. But if the beach is surrounded by resorts, malls or homes, all shining with artificial lighting, they won’t be able to distinguish moonlight from lamplight. Instead of reaching the ocean, they’ll find themselves on roads or properties, easy picking for predators.

Fortunately, light pollution is the easiest type of pollution to fix. With literally just a flick of a switch.

Turning off unnecessary lights and putting shields on streetlights to direct beams downward can stop the light from reaching underwater or from spilling over into the night sky.

Along the Florida coast, where 90 percent of sea turtles lay their eggs, coastal communities have now retrofitted their outdoor lighting by installing foot lights and shifting to 10-feet tall pole lights. They are also exploring the use of outdoor fixtures which use longer-wavelength LEDs rather than bright-white lights. It’s safer for the turtles and it doesn’t have the same negative impact on human health.

Our dependence on artificial lighting will always remain. But by using it responsibly, we can minimize its negative effects on the environment.

It’s similar to what we’re doing here at Wave Tribe. We’ll always love surfing but it doesn’t have to mean that we use toxic surfing gears and products to continue enjoying the benefits of surfing.

Rather, we make sure that we protect the ocean by developing toxic-free surf products, sourcing sustainable materials, and recycling plastic disposables.

It’s all part of our mission to safeguard the ocean while continuing to enjoy the stoke that we get from surfing.

If you want to be part of that mission, go check out our site. We’ve got lots of stylish and eco-friendly surfing gear for the responsible surfer.


Wavetribe Essential Reads

Can Our Beaches Survive Climate Change
Things You Can Do For Trash Free Seas - The Ultimate Guide
Why Oceans are so Important - Everything You Need to Know