On August 1, the newly revised Shanghai Environmental Protection Regulations came into effect. In the new regulations, “light pollution” control has become the focus.
In recent years, the government has continuously strengthened the supervision of cultural tourism landscape lighting.
Some people think that this is a shackle; some people think that it will force the industry to develop in a more healthy, orderly, and high-quality direction.
Let’s take a look at what industry insiders have to say about this regulation!
Avoid light pollution, basic guidelines designers should follow
The upgrade of light pollution prevention and control in Shanghai’s environmental protection regulations is a good thing for excellent lighting designers. It will accelerate the survival of the fittest in the industry and place higher demands on designers.
Engaged in lighting design for many years, we have been focusing on energy conservation, environmental protection, light pollution, and other issues, which should also be the basic guidelines that every designer should follow.
On the one hand, “light pollution” wastes resources, and on the other hand, it destroys the habitats of animals and plants, so that children do not know what the radiance of the galaxy is. Judging from some foreign experience, the lights required by the night economy are not blindly bright and gorgeous. Many western countries have strict requirements on the lighting of scenic spots at night.
For example, at the Singapore Night Safari Park, its lighting is extremely restrained. In some places, you can hear the chirping of animals at night, see the faint fluorescence of fireflies, and the faint rays of light from the eyes of owls.
Therefore, as designers, we should choose design schemes with restraint as much as possible, and meet people’s aesthetic needs of life with effective and reasonable schemes.
Of course, the prevention and control of light pollution require the strength of all aspects of society. Among them, improving the public’s aesthetic level and environmental awareness of the light environment is the current priority. In the future, how to use light as a medium to achieve a win-win situation between people and the environment is an important topic that we urgently need to study in depth.
Preventing light pollution may still have a long way to go
China has a vast territory, and the level of economic development in different regions is uneven. In first-tier cities, the phenomenon of light pollution has received more attention. However, in many economically backward areas, various light shows and night scene lighting projects are still regarded as an important symbol of economic prosperity, and also a carrier of the political achievements of many local governments. Therefore, the understanding and prevention of light pollution may still have a long way to go across the country.
In the past few years, the cultural tourism night scene lighting market has been greatly impacted. Like last year’s National Day, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and other big cities stopped holding light shows. In the first half of this year, many projects in Shanghai could not start due to the epidemic, but the demand for night scene lighting in characteristic towns, cultural tourism night tours, etc. is still strong. From the current point of view, the main market is concentrated in the second and third-tier cities.
From the “Dongfeng Night Flowers and Thousands of Trees”, “Night Markets Thousands of Lights Shine Blue Clouds”, to today’s various dazzling light shows, we must see the folk demand and value of urban cultural tourism landscape lighting, and use a dynamic development look at it with eyes.
Excessive and bright lights and indifference to light pollution may be a process that cultural tourism landscape lighting needs to go through. With the improvement of people’s living standards, people’s understanding will continue to change. In the future, the industry will pay more and more attention to the cultural experience and aesthetic spirit contained in lighting, as well as the harmony between man and nature.
Help relevant majors to interpret and promote the cross-border development of the industry
In the new edition of “Shanghai Environmental Protection Regulations”, the light pollution phenomenon is regulated and rectified, and I think four messages are revealed.
First, the state’s governance of urban road lighting and landscape lighting is developing from a rough type to a refined direction. In the past, there were also requirements for light pollution control, but more of them were at the level of technical standards and design standards. This time, laws and regulations have been incorporated. Although it cannot be said to be the highest legal level, it is also a qualitative upgrade.
The second is the extension and expansion of lighting multi-attributes. This time it involves multiple departments such as environmental protection, transportation, and public security, and lighting has extended from a single building attribute to multiple attributes in the past. For enterprises, it is necessary to learn more knowledge. You need to study the law, understand the law, implement the spirit of the laws and regulations, and also learn professional knowledge in an interdisciplinary and professional manner.
For example, in terms of monitoring fill light, it is not just the concept of lighting an object before. It not only considers how to facilitate night photography but also considers the problem of preventing glare for drivers and pedestrians.
Third, it is conducive to the “front runner” plan. In the past, we often performed according to the minimum standard, or just met the standard. This time, the standards for the prevention and control of light pollution have been raised, and some backward enterprises may be eliminated.
For example, in the past ten years, the cost budget for a single square meter of lighting projects may have increased by 1-2 times, but in terms of energy saving and lighting effects, it may have increased by more than 4-5 times. In the past, it was enough to do a floodlight and an inner see-through. Now, it can be used for media curtain walls, 3D animation, etc.
So, why couldn’t it be done in the past? On the one hand, it is a technical reason, and on the other hand, it is the minimum standard, and the lowest price will always win the bid. Now the requirements for the prevention and control of light pollution have been improved, which is conducive to promoting the upward development of the industry, and some good products and good solutions can be applied.
However, we must also have a sense of urgency, that is, if you do not do it well, lighting may become a supporting role in other industries. The most typical example is the smart light pole. It turned out that functions such as monitoring, display, and broadcasting were added to our street light poles, but our capabilities were not up to it. Now, more of this big cake has been eaten by others.
It is mentioned in this regulation that public security, transportation, and other departments should promote the application of low-light and no-light technologies in the process of monitoring facility construction. In the past, those monitoring equipment companies may not pay special attention to this or thought it is not important.
If we don’t do our best in lighting, they may solve these new problems on their own, such as integrating total solutions to prevent glare in surveillance technology. The one thing that could give lighting companies more room to play and generate greater value may in the end have nothing to do with us.
The fourth is to facilitate the promotion of lighting inspection, lighting design, cost formulation, and other related majors. The testing industry needs new standards. Because there are more requirements, such as the inability to directly irradiate residential buildings, new products, and new technologies are needed, which also contributes to the improvement of the value of the lighting industry.
Therefore, the implementation of the “Regulations” is not to impose shackles on landscape lighting, road lighting, and other industries. Overall, the pros outweigh the cons. I also hope that more lighting companies can seize the opportunity of regulatory upgrades, create more value, and make our lives better!
