Fuming residents say their world-famous night skies have been ruined by dazzling lights beaming from a new Shell petrol station. Stargazers have blasted the fuel giant and accused them of “blatant light pollution” after they built a garage in a sleepy village.
The Shell garage and Spar opened in the village – which has just 458 residents and is one of the darkest places in the country – last November. Thropton, Northumberland, is on the edge of the Northumberland National Park, which has been named one of the world’s best places to gaze at the stars. Several residents are now calling for the garage to either shut at night or close completely over fears the beaming lights will drive star-watching tourists away.
One said: “We are fortunate to live in one of the most unspoilt areas of Northumberland, yet they slap a big petrol station in the middle of us. There is blatant light pollution seeping into the night sky.
"This corner of Northumberland is world-famous for its dark skies. It’s a real shame this accolade wasn’t considered when this came before the planners.”
Another local said: “The village is three miles away from Rothbury, which has 2,000 residents, but that doesn’t have a petrol station. Why didn’t they put it there and leave our dark skies alone?
“We have several pubs and guest houses in the village, which rely on people coming to enjoy the night sky. Without that tourism, particularly in winter when the skies are at their most dramatic, many businesses will struggle.”
The 572sqm of the county were awarded Gold Tier status for their pristine dark skies, rating it alongside Death Valley in America. Between November to February thousands of dark-sky fans flock to the area to enjoy the Northern Lights, also known as aurora borealis, which is visible over the county.
The lights row has erupted on social media to such an extent a local Facebook group even conducted a poll of residents to shed light on the issue. According to the Rothbury & Coquetdale Facebook group, 98% of people said the lighting was not a problem. Meanwhile, 2% of people agreed that the lighting was “ghastly” and a “blight on our landscape”.
Local councillor Steven Bridgett, who represents Thropton, said: “A complaint has been made to Northumberland County Council by a parish council that neighbours Thropton regarding the lighting. What I will say is that the lighting scheme that is currently in place is very different from what was originally proposed and a lot more conservative (than was previously proposed).”
The row comes after scientists say light pollution has led to eroding star visibility around the world over the past decade.
Dr Christopher Kyba, of the the German Research Centre for Geosciences, said: "To put this in perspective, a child born in an area where 250 stars were visible would likely see fewer than 100 in the same location 18 years later.”
A Shell spokesperson said: “The site mentioned is a dealer-owned site and they are aware of the complaint regarding lighting coming from this service station. The service station currently meets regulation requirements for light pollution. We are aware the area being gold-tier for star-gazing, and are currently exploring suitable solutions to dim the lighting to address this concern.”
