Important: this consultation covers two separate Bills — the Planning Bill and the Natural Environment Bill. Many people assume it’s just one. The omission of light pollution runs through both, so your submission needs to refer to both Bills to be counted.
New Zealand is famous for its dark skies – it gets so dark that you can stand outside at night and see the Milky Way like a real object, yet light pollution legislation is missing from New Zealand’s new planning laws. Read here more about our excellent sky.
Over the last decade, communities across Aotearoa have worked hard to protect that darkness. The result is something world-class: New Zealand now has around 10 internationally accredited Dark Sky Places, with many more communities working toward accreditation.
But right now, our night skies are facing a quiet policy problem.
The issue: light pollution isn’t explicitly recognised
Our Parliament is currently reviewing new planning legislation to replace the way environmental effects are managed in New Zealand. The draft law, however, does not explicitly recognise artificial light at night (light pollution) as an environmental effect. That might sound like a technical detail. It isn’t. Because under the proposed system, many of the effects we normally associate with light pollution (visual impacts, amenity impacts, character impacts) may not be treated as “in scope” unless light pollution is clearly named.
For example, if your neighbour refuses to take down their Christmas lights all year round, illuminate their house with up lights or decides to shine a spotlight or security light right into your bedroom or your courtyard just because they don’t think other neighbours exist, there is nothing we can do other than talk to them directly. And if the law doesn’t clearly include light pollution, it becomes much harder to regulate it.
Important: it’s actually TWO Bills
A quick but important detail: this submission process covers two separate pieces of legislation being reviewed together, the Planning Bill and the Natural Environment Bill. It’s easy to miss this and assume it’s only one Bill. When you make your submission, make sure you refer to both, because the gap around light pollution runs across both laws.
Why this matters
Light pollution rarely arrives as one giant floodlight. It creeps in:
- A new subdivision here
- A bright security light there
- A sports field upgrade
- A few rural lifestyle blocks
- New commercial lighting
- More infrastructure lighting
- More LED glare
- More skyglow
Each change feels small. But the night sky doesn’t care about intentions. It only responds to photons. The more light we put upwards, the more we lose the contrast, and once the light that comes from below is the same as the one that comes from the stars above, we cannot see them anymore. So simple and yet so effective, light pollution is all about contrast. Once a sky is degraded, unless we all turn off lights we don’t use, or install sensor-controlled lights or lower the temperature of street lights, which is difficult to do once a system is already in place.
Light pollution isn’t about banning light
Many times, we get asked by our visitors at Star Safari if, now that we are in a Dark Sky Reserve, we must keep the lights off. No. Lights are not banned, not even in a dark sky reserve, but we need good lighting:
- lighting where it’s needed
- at the right brightness
- aimed down, not up
- warmer colour temperatures where appropriate
- timed or motion-triggered where possible
This is the same approach used in leading dark-sky regions overseas: sensible, modern lighting that supports safety and protects the environment.
Why the law needs to mention it
New Zealand has protected dark sky areas largely through local planning rules. But the new planning system is designed to rely heavily on national direction and standardised provisions. That creates a risk:
If light pollution is not explicitly recognised in the legislation, councils may be discouraged from introducing lighting rules, even when their communities strongly support it.
Local councils or central government? Both views are valid
People disagree on who should be “in charge” of dark sky protection. Some believe councils should lead. Some believe the central government should set national rules. That debate matters, and there are pros and cons to both approaches. But right now, there is something more urgent than that debate:
We need light pollution explicitly included in the legislation.
Because without that legal foundation, both local and national solutions become harder.
What can we do?
We can tell the government that we care about light pollution. It takes a few minutes to submit, and to make things easier, we prepared two submission templates; however, you can simply state that this needs to be considered.
Two submission templates (choose your style)
Template A: (click here) National standards + local delivery (For people who want a consistent national direction)
Template B: (click here) Council-led protection, supported by law (For people who want councils empowered to act)
Both templates ask for the same core change recognise artificial light at night as an environmental effect and ensure the system can protect dark-sky areas.
Dark skies are fragile. They don’t recover once they’re gone. Even a short copy-paste submission helps — take 2 minutes before the deadline.
Deadline
Submissions close 4.30pm Friday 13 February 2026. Even a short submission helps.
How to make your submission
Submissions to the Planning Bill can be made online via Parliament’s submission portal:
https://www3.parliament.nz/en/ECommitteeSubmission/54SCENV_SCF_BA467863-D6B0-4968-1027-08DE369D9192/CreateSubmission
You’ll be guided through an online form where you can either paste in your submission text or upload a document. The form needs to be completed in one session (so it’s best to have your text ready). You’ll be asked whether you’re submitting as an individual or on behalf of an organisation, for your contact details, and whether you’d like to make an oral submission (this is a safe and supportive process).
Even a brief submission makes a difference. Together, many small actions help show that dark skies matter: culturally, environmentally, and for the wellbeing of our communities.
If you have suggestions or additions you’d like to share, just let us know.
Thank you for being part of this collective effort, and for standing up for our night skies.
Ngā mihi nui,
Hari & Sam
Milky-Way.Kiwi
