3 ms·

This doesn't sound great, what about all the tree dwelling critters that would be unable to hide or sleep?

• nine_k 12y ago
  They could sleep on another tree.
  • sosuke 12y ago
    Indeed, I did incorrectly assume this could/would be in all the trees on the street.
    • sologoub 12y ago
      I think it depends on city density. Many streets in SF have about as many trees as light poles, so you'd probably have to replace all those with the glowing ones to make enough light.
• sologoub 12y ago
  That was my thought as well. Wildlife has adapted to the city life, but changing how trees work will definitely have unintended consequences. If like the other comments note, the impact is lost within a few generations, it's of less risk. However, if that's not true and it starts to spread, we could be looking at a serious problem. Personally, I don't know of how much benefit this is given the low consumption of LEDs. The trees will need energy from somewhere, so their requirements for soil/nutrients will likely be a lot greater than the current tree population, resulting in need to fertilize/upkeep. This could end up being a lot more expensive than LED light poles using electricity. Environmental impact from the need for more nutrients/fertilizer could be significant as well.