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MARK GEE / Stuff
The Milky Way over southern Wairarapa taken from an overlook in the Tararua mountain range.
Warmer-hued street lighting and restrictions on sports field lights are part of a plan to make Wairarapa the world’s largest dark-sky preserve.
Councils in the region are proposing a change to the Wairarapa Combined District Plan that will improve the view of the night sky.
The plan change would require the new lighting to be low Kelvin (warmer tone), shielded to direct light downward, and the proposal will also include a 10 p.m. curfew for sports field lighting.
The Dark Sky Management Area, as it has been called, includes the districts of South Wairarapa and Carterton.
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The South Wairarapa District Council just approved the plan change to go out for public consultation.
The Wairarapa Dark Sky Society was preparing an application to the International Dark Sky Association for the region to be certified as an International Dark Sky Reserve.
The society’s Becky Bateman said the changes to the plan were vital to the application they hoped to submit before the end of the year.
If approved, the reservation could be officially recognized from February 2021.
Bateman said there had been some confusion as to what the proposed changes would mean, and he wanted to assure the community that normal activities would not be disrupted.
“There are many misconceptions that everyone should have their lights off at 10 o’clock, that is not true.
“Of course you can still play netball in the dark, as long as the lights are off when you’re not using them.
Lights that were on would have to be protected and warmer color tones (less than 3000Kelvin) were also preferred.
supplied / Stuff
Examples of how protection against light can prevent light pollution in the night sky.
“Instead of having blue and white lights, where a lot of advice is heading, think of more yellow-orange which is a better color to keep skies dark,” Bateman said.
The Masterton district to the north was planned to join the reserve in the next few years, making it the largest in the world, Bateman said.
South Wairarapa Mayor Alex Beijen said a dark sky preserve would be a great attraction.
“The South Wairarapa region is already well established on the tourist map, especially for its world-renowned wineries.
“Being a dark sky reserve, we would attract visitors throughout the year, leading to new business and jobs,” said Beijen.
He said the council had already switched most of its street lighting from 4000K to 3000K LED bulbs and NZTA had not yet made the switch with most of its lighting on state highways.
The South Wairarapa Dark Sky Reserve Project received $ 100,000 in money from the Provincial Growth Fund last year to help advance its implementation.
The Carterton District Council also had to approve the plan change, which will be considered at a meeting next Wednesday.
If approved, the proposal will go to public consultation later this month, where people can submit their proposals.
