Hong Kong’s glaring problem: green group finds shops stay lit despite call to switch off at night
- Light pollution is worsening but residents have no recourse to fix the problem, The Green Earth says
- Shops that signed charter promising to switch off are found with lights on, but blame ‘malfunctions’
A Hong Kong government move to get building owners to voluntarily switch off their outdoor lights late at night is not working, according to a green group that conducted surveys in the city.
It found that even some building owners who signed a charter agreeing to switch off their bright lights and allow residents to have a good night’s sleep had not kept their promise.
“This voluntary charter just continues to be all bark and no bite,” said Edmond Lau Shiu-long, senior project manager of The Green Earth. “The residents affected by light pollution still have no recourse to get the problem solved.”
The group’s latest survey early this month along a section of Sai Yeung Choi Street South, between Dundas Street and Mong Kok Road, found 28 shops with their outdoor lights left on after they closed at 11pm.
Two of the shops were among companies that had signed the charter volunteering to switch off their outdoor lights.
The outlets of fast-food group Café de Coral and appliances chain Broadway had their signboards lit past 11pm, beyond their respective closing times of 10pm and 10.30pm.
Both blamed a time switch malfunction for failing to turn off the lights automatically on time.