The first three chapters describe the world to be perceived, at the ecological scale. This chapter opens the section on how we visually perceive that world - via information. Remember, a key part of the ecological analysis is doing things in this order (see the Introduction).
The work of the next few chapters is to lay out a theory of ecological optics. Lots of science studies light, but as with the physical world/environment distinction, Gibson will insist on distinguishing between the physics of light and the ecology of it; only the latter will be relevant to a theory of perception.
Sabrina also blogged this chapter here.