Sea Turtles

Light pollution is something I have been completely unaware of until recently, I have never given it much thought and did not realize exactly how drastically it affects our lives and other living things on earth. Chad Moore, of the National Parks Service, reminds us, "When we add light to the environment, that has the potential to disrupt habitat, just like running a bulldozer over the landscape can. Darkness is a necessary habitat for nocturnal animals, so what's the habitat for people?" (qtd. in City Dark). As soon as Moore mentions bulldozers I immediately am reminded of the rainforests of Venezuela and the Amazons, where every day thousands upon thousands of acres are destroyed every day. I support the development of all countries but at what cost are we going to pay in ten or fifty years from now when such important parts of the world are completely eradicated? Major cities such as New York and Houston, can also have quite a negative impact on nature even though most people are not fully aware of it and those negative impacts can be nearly as bad as the bulldozers in the rainforest. Sea turtles being one of the few animals affected by cities, are now considered an endangered species largely due to the fact that large towns or cities such as Galveston or Miami are located extremely close to the beaches where sea turtles bury their eggs in the sand. Cities are very often beautiful to look at after the sun has set, but those beautifully designed buildings are also the cause of countless newborn sea turtle deaths. Over millions of years sea turtles have evolved to follow the light of the moon and stars into the ocean, one hundred years ago that was still not a major issue because of the lack of development. But now with technology as advanced as it is, shortly after the turtles emerge from their sand covered eggs, the night lights of the city attract the turtles in the wrong direction, away from the water. Chaney states that "Every summer tens of thousands of [Florida sea] turtles, already a threatened species, are lost to disorientation" (City Dark). Fortunately around the coast there are many volunteer organizations that are able to help prevent thousands of sea turtle deaths each year, but it is still not enough. There are things coastal cities could do to help the cause, but it would probably be "bad business" if they had to shut off their lights a few nights a year to allow the newly hatched turtles a safer journey into the sea. Until I researched this topic a little more, I had no idea that light pollution caused the sea turtles to become disoriented and eventually get lost and die. We could immensely help the turtles and other types of wildlife affected by lights if more people were aware of the situation and the negative side effects of our lights.