Desktop Assessment of Light

As global leaders in the emerging field of artificial light and light pollution, we were requested to support the development of the Federal Government’s National Light Pollution Guidelines for Wildlife. As a result, we have a thorough understanding of Australia’s emerging regulatory framework for the management of artificial light, including the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process for understanding the effects of artificial light on wildlife, outlined in the Guidelines. Our appropriately qualified personnel can support each step of the impact assessment process:

Step 1: Describe the Project Lighting

Our Technical Specialists can interpret lighting designs and specifications to produce a non-technical description of your project’s lighting appropriate for an EIA. Combining with our other services, we can quantify the existing light environment using our Monitoring capability and characterise the potential additional artificial light emissions from a proposed project using our Modelling capability.

Step 2: Describe the Wildlife or Ecological Community

Our Environmental Scientists, including marine turtle and seabird specialists, can conduct a comprehensive desktop assessment of existing information. Where required, we can engage our Biological Monitoring services to design and execute fauna baseline surveys to fill any gaps in knowledge. Alternatively, for other light-sensitive species or habitats that we do not monitor, such as bats, terrestrial mammals, amphibians, or terrestrial plants, we can incorporate your monitoring data into this step of the impact assessment process.

Step 3: Impact Assessment

Following the completion of the preceding steps, our EIA Specialists will develop a project-specific impact assessment that accounts for the level of detail available for the lighting design and the presence of species that are vulnerable to impacts from artificial light. The output is a high-quality risk assessment tailored to your needs and situation.

Step 4: Artificial Light Management Plan

We can develop a project-specific Artificial Light Management Plan that ensures potential impacts of artificial light are mitigated and managed in a way that is compliant with regulatory and internal requirements. Inclusion of monitoring, reporting, and auditing requirements allows the development of adaptive management strategies, promoting continual improvement in artificial light management and ensuring your project maintains compliance throughout its life cycle.

Step 5: Biological and Artificial Light Monitoring and Auditing

Follow the links to our Biological Monitoring, Artificial Light Monitoring, and Artificial Light Auditing pages to learn more about our capabilities and experience.