Lahti shines a light on pollinator protection

The project involves replacing 12 streetlights along a 500-metre stretch of road within the Ritamäki Nature Reserve in Lahti. The new lights automatically filter out blue wavelengths, which are particularly attractive to insects and can make them disoriented. The warmer light tone helps to prevent insects from mistaking the light for stars and the Moon and allows them to continue their pollination activities undisturbed.

The nature reserve was chosen for its high pollinator activity, which makes it an ideal location to assess the effectiveness of the new lighting technology.

“If the solution proves to be effective and cost-efficient, we will begin replacing lights step by step in other areas where the impact would be significant,” said Veera Hämäläinen, communications director for the City of Lahti.

According to Lahti, plants in artificially lit areas attract up to 62 per cent fewer pollinators than plants in dark areas.

Green ambitions

This initiative is part of Lahti's broader We Can't Survive Without Pollinators campaign, which aims to raise awareness about the importance of pollinators. Earlier this summer, the campaign distributed 10 000 seed packets and 100 Pollinators at Work Here yard signs to residents. Additionally, five designer pollinator homes, created by award-winning Lahti-based interior architect Tapio Anttila, were installed in Mukkula Manor Park.

Going one step further, the City of Lahti is hosting a Night of the Pollinators on 7 September, seeking to motivate residents to dim usage of their outdoor lighting for part of the night or its entirely.

Lahti has pledged its commitment to sustainability through several projects in recent years and has set the ambitious goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2025. This dedication earned the city a spot on National Geographic’s list of five forward-thinking European cities in 2020. Lahti has also been recognised as one of Europe’s climate neutrality pioneers, along with five other Finnish cities, by the European Commission.

In 2023, Lahti achieved a world first by piloting a deposit system for recycling textile waste.