This news article was originally written in Spanish. It has been automatically translated for your convenience. Reasonable efforts have been made to provide an accurate translation, however, no automated translation is perfect nor is it intended to replace a human translator. The original article in Spanish can be viewed at El alumbrado público español, el de mayor gasto eléctrico por habitante en Europa

The study of light pollution from the Complutense University Group makes public an unpublished graphic so far showing that Spain leads the energy consumption per capita

Spanish lighting, of higher electric spending per capita in Europe

Drafting Interempresas15/03/2011

on March 15, 2011

The annual growth in expenditure on public lighting stands at 4.7%, according to a report of the Group of study of the light pollution of the Department of Astrophysics and science of the atmosphere of the Complutense.

Before the debate on energy saving measures, the study of light pollution from the Complutense University group made public this graphic - unpublished until now - that shows electric expenditure in public lighting per capita in ten countries of the European Union:

The graphic, expressed in kilowatt-hours per year, makes it clear that Spain is the European record in energy consumption per capita, with 118-114 kwh/year per citizen, against 90-77 of France or the Germany, according to Alejandro Sánchez Miguel 48-43researcher of the study group of light pollution, which belongs to the Group University of instrumentation and extragalactic Astrophysics (GOUACHE) of the UCM.

Publications from 2007 until now in this line of research, the Group's study of light pollution, that directs the Professor Jaime Zamorano, uses data from satellite images, power consumption of the Spanish Ministry of industry and the Contract TREN/D1/40-2005/LOT9/S07.56457 report statistics. Preparatory Studies for Eco-design requirements of EuPs, commissioned by the European Commission. His research says that Spain is the country of the European Union with the most lit streets and, therefore, most polluters skies per capita. Per luminaire power can be seen in the following chart published in 2009:

Alejandro Sánchez also notes that the annual growth in expenditure on public lighting is situated in a 4.7%, compared to 0.7% of the population growth, and that Spain is the country of the European Union with greater density of population in built area, by which light should be much cheaper than in other countries.

As regards the geographical distribution of waste, no Spanish province complies with the Plan of Action 2008-2012 of the strategy of saving and energy efficiency. Sanchez said that in recent years the largest increase in lighting has been "in the new buildings, as in Murcia, and in areas of low population density, where it has doubled and even tripled in some cases the level of pollutant emissions".

The study group of light pollution, which is making a catalogue of photographs of the international space station, indicates that "Spain is in fact one of the favorite places of the astronauts to take pictures at night, to clear is how easy it is already very enlightened".