the city of Toulouse threatened by legal action
The association France Nature Environnement Midi-Pyrénées is taking legal action against the town hall of Toulouse to put an end to illegal night lighting and fight against light pollution.
“Reduce light pollution“: the association France Nature Environnement (FNE) Midi-Pyrénées is taking legal action against the town hall of Toulouse on January 25 for stop illegal night lighting from some shops.
Some stores stay on all nightwhile their lights should be off”at 1 a.m. at the latest” and “be turned on at 7 a.m. at the earliest“, according to the law of 2018.
“We ask today the Mayor of Toulouse to kindly notify the formal notices […] to the referred“As soon as possible, claim the association in its press release, which sent a letter to the city with a report by bailiff of 36 businesses lit after 1 a.m.
“We want to uphold the law“, justifies Hervé Hourcade, jurist of FNE Midi-Pyrénées, affirming that it could be theone of the first legal actions against a town hall in France on this subject.
light pollution gain more and more ground in France and around the world. the number of stars visible to the naked eye the night could, in some places, to be halved in less than twenty years according to a scientific study recently published in the journal Science. The researchers deduced that a place from which 250 stars could be observed would shrink to 100 in 18 years.
Those disturbing lights also living beings and all biodiversity. “Having a light source during sleep can greatly disturb it and promote diseases“, explains Eliott Shaw, in charge of the light pollution mission with the FNE Midi-Pyrénées.
Humans are not the only ones affected, since many species are nocturnal. With this light pollution, some can no longer use the starry sky to find one’s bearings like bats. The luminous halo caused by the lights of the Toulouse metropolis also has an effect of attraction or of repulsion depending on the different animals, disturbing and changing their natural behavior.
Illegal continuous lighting is against the effort demands of “energy sobriety” requested by the governmentand already adopted by many professionals including some food brands.
We can raise awareness and alert, but even in good conscience some remain on, despite the illegality and the environmental impact
Elliott ShawLight pollution project manager at the FNE Midi-Pyrénées
Since 2017, the association has carried out several raids to pay to raise awarenessduring each action, a hundred traders. A third of the professionals changed their behavior after each operation. A review”not satisfying. We want everything to be extinguished as plannedadds Elliott Shaw. “Five years that we alert and it has evolved too little. There is a lack of will from the municipal team“.
FNE has exchanged many times with the town hall and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Toulouse. “Sand success“. Contacted, the two institutions have not given an answer for the time being.
France Nature Environment gives two weeks to the Toulouse town hall to pay issue an answer. In case of refusal, she will go to the administrative court for “end this wasted on time […] of (the) energy sobriety“.