Astronomers in Galicia, Spain, want to see legal measures to keep light levels down

Here's a piece of news in Spanish that probably slipped under the radar for most, about efforts to bring about a legal solution to light pollution in Galicia, the area of Spain just north of Portugal. These solutions are generally pretty bereft of controversy since they involve saving money at the same time, and light pollution laws have been enacted in a great many areas of the world. The image on the right shows the difference between what you can see from the country vs. urban areas. Part of the article:

Enjoying observation of stars at night requires a clear sky. In Galicia, much of the year has clouds and mist, but there is another inconvenience added to this: light contamination.

Due to this, astronomers in Galicia are asking that the autonomous community that governs the region adopt a law as those that exist already in Andalucia, the Canary Islands and Catalunia, pioneers of the idea in Spain.

This will be the main assertion made at the Festival of Astronomy which will occur soon on the 18th, 19th and 20th of September, in the town of Maceda, according to Hugo González, one of the organizers of the event. González is calling on the government to make an effort to reduce this contamination. Technically it would not require a great deal of effort, as it would only involve giving streetlights fixtures that only emit non-interfering light and nothing towards the sky, which would also imply significant cost savings as well.

At Maceda, more than one hundred will attend from the dozen or so associations that currently exist in Galicia.

For more information on the event, see here and here.