What astounds me is the way people waste electricity with excessive lighting (yes as an amateur astronomer I do notice wasted lighting a lot more) but I notice many houses dont just have an outside light, they have dual 150watt floodlights, and not sensor ones, but ones permanantly left on all night. How do they afford the power bills?
The best thing governments can do to start limiting our "carbon footprints" is to have the same lighting ordinances in every city in Australia as there is in Coonabarabran, and lighting like this
http://www.mso.anu.edu.au/news/archive/2004/03_mar/
MUST be mandatory. It should also be illegal to lave on any light outside that isnt for an essential purpose. Every streetlight must be shielded, and the wattage of its bulb halved. All these acts would at least halve or more, power consumption for lighting across Australia, yet still provide adequate and safe lghting where its needed. It would, as a not too small side issue give us MUCH darker night skies in the cities
