I WISH to add my concern on the subject of light pollution.

Some weeks ago the lamp-head on the pole outside my property was changed, imposing upon us a bright light, the bulb being exposed in a prismatic glass, scattering light everywhere and floodlighting our home.

I have discovered that it contravenes the recommendations of the Institute of Lighting Engineers. These lamp-heads are appearing elsewhere in the town's suburbs.

The lamps in Tavistock's town centre are attractive. At the town end of Plymouth Road the tall standards are also nice ones. Being well designed they efficiently illuminate the road surface without scattering spurious light.

Beyond them the lamps are not so attractive or efficient. But their replacements are even less efficient — astonishing with the concerns being expressed about global warming!

We are privileged to live in such a lovely town from which such beautiful surroundings can be seen by day. But by night such beauty is being ruined by the lighting. The night sky has all but disappeared. Indeed, it is now so bright that the birds (not the owls) sing at 2 o'clock in the morning!

A bright light ahead diminishes the road surface illumination, which is not only counterproductive, but a possible road safety hazard. The light should be on the road, not lighting up the sky! And if this continues Tavistock by night is going to be little different to a lot of big urban towns and cities.

Please check your local light tonight and protest before it is too late. The aesthetics of Tavistock are at stake.

Terence Scarborough

1 Uplands

Tavistock

I WRITE in response to Tania Seldon's concerns about light pollution.

Whilst it is true that we are looking at ways of lighting our historic buildings, bridges and riverside walks, we are well aware of light pollution and are using specialist consultants to advise us on the best form of lighting (which is not necessarily spotlights) to enhance the town for the people who live and work in Tavistock.

No final proposals have yet been formulated as we are awaiting the consultants' detailed advice, but in any event it was never the intention to illuminate these buildings throughout the night but to arrange for a sensible switch-off time, such as 10 o'clock.

Bearing in mind that this is a town and the streetlights are on all night, the centre of Tavistock has never been an ideal place to watch the stars, as locations such as Pork Hill are far more suitable.

As our proposals are at an early stage we would welcome any helpful suggestions and ideas from the community as to how to show off our wonderful heritage to its best advantage without causing inconvenience.

John G Taylor

Chairman

Tavistock Forward