Light pollution as a Statutory Nuisance: using the new law

The first UK law tackling light pollution comes into force on 6 April 2006. Exterior lighting will join noise and smells on the list of things that can be treated as a Statutory Nuisance under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Things your local council's Environmental Health Department can take legal action against. The new law (Section 102 of the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005) makes 'exterior light emitted from premises so as to be prejudicial to health or a nuisance' a criminal offence.

The new law doesn't tackle all forms of light pollution, only incidents of particularly bad lighting from some types of premises which cause people real nuisance. But CPRE would like to see it used, to raise awareness of the issue and to help people who really are suffering from severe light pollution.

How you can take action under this new law

1. Record the problem
Keep a detailed note of the time and date the lighting is on, and if possible, take photographs showing the effect it has and why it is a nuisance.

2. Speak to the light owner
Try to discuss the nuisance with the person causing the light pollution. Don't start off by making a formal complaint to the courts or officialdom. Court action is a heavy artillery remedy and should not be a first-line action.

Your local council's Environmental Health Department will expect to try mediation or negotiation before court action. A court case could lead to a feud with your neighbour, so see if mediation can help – the Mediation UK website may be useful.

3. Confirm the lighting is covered under the Act
If negotiation fails, make sure your complaint will hold up to scrutiny under the new law. The Government expects the most common complaints to be about domestic and commercial floodlighting, sports facilities, domestic decorative lighting, floodlighting of buildings and landscapes, laser shows and 'light art'.

The light must come from 'premises' in order to invoke the criminal law. Street lighting is not likely to be deemed to come from 'premises', so unfortunately street lights will almost certainly not be covered.

There is a list of exempted premises — which, alas, includes some of the biggest contributors to light pollution — goods vehicle operating facilities, public transport centres, harbours and airports. They are exempted because 'high levels of light are required for safety and security reasons'.

Statutory nuisance is a criminal offence, and it is the local authority that takes the action. This is different from common law nuisance, where complainants take the action themselves, to the civil courts. For you to have a claim for statutory nuisance, the lighting must be 'prejudicial to health or a nuisance' and harm your enjoyment of your land. This will rule out quite a lot of problem lighting, because you cannot make a complaint about lighting affecting common land.

The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health thinks that there must be a negative effect on health to amount to a nuisance. They take this view because statutory nuisance was originally introduced in the mid-19th century as a means of tackling ill health. However, lighting can be compared to noise as a statutory nuisance, which was not regulated until 1960, and certainly could not cause illnesses as understood in the 19th century. So it can be argued that if the lighting causes a 'nuisance' this is a valid ground for complaint on its own, even if it does not have a negative health effect. But the lighting will have to be more than a mere irritant.

If the lighting comes from premises that are not exempt, and you think that the lights meet the criteria of statutory nuisance, you have two options.

4. Speak to your local authority
Firstly, you could report the matter to the local environmental health officer at your local authority. Think carefully and give clear reasons as to why your health or enjoyment of your property is badly affected. For example, perhaps the light stops you sleeping. After trying mediation, the officer will have to decide, based upon the new guidelines, whether the lighting could be a nuisance. If so, the officer will ask for the nuisance to be 'abated' (reduced or removed), for example by angling the light downwards. If the person responsible for the light fails to do this, the officer may take the matter to court and the person may be ordered to abate the nuisance and possibly be fined up to £5,000. None of this will cost you anything.

5. Use the courts
If your local authority will not act, you may take a statutory nuisance case to court yourself under Section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. But be warned: the magistrates will ask why your local authority has failed to act and may be swayed by its reasons for inaction. Moreover, costs may be awarded against you if you lose the case.

CPRE thanks Michael Morgan Taylor for writing this. Michael, a senior lecturer at the department of law at De Montfort University, is also on the council of the British Astronomical Association and is legal counsel for the Campaign for Dark Skies.