Hong Kong light pollution 1,000 times brighter than globally accepted levels

HONG KONG (AFP) - Hong Kong is one of the world's worst cities for light pollution with night skies around 1,000 times brighter than globally accepted levels, researchers said on Wednesday ahead of this year's Earth Hour event.

A study by Hong Kong University found that brightness levels in the southern Chinese city's popular shopping district of Tsim Sha Tsui were 1,200 times greater than the international dark sky standard - a measurement void of manmade light.

The densely-populated city of seven million inhabitants, full of residential highrises, towering office blocks and neon advertisements, has no laws to control external lighting. The result, researchers say, is that light pollution is thought to be much worse than in other large cities, including London, Sydney, Tokyo and Shanghai.

"In Hong Kong, you cannot go anywhere outdoor in the evening without your eyes being blinded by this really intrusive outdoor lighting," the light pollution survey's head Jason Pun told AFP.