“They help lessen light pollution.”
HILLSIDE, Colorado — Perched nearly 7,900 feet above sea level is a dark sky community in the adjoining town of Westcliffe, one of 34 across the United States recognized by the Arizona-based International Dark-Sky Association or IDA.
The IDA is the leading organization in the world that works to combat light pollution and has been granting Dark Sky designations to parks, reserves, sanctuaries, and communities since 1998.
The Westcliffe dark sky community, which averages 2.7 degrees Celsius to 22.7 degrees Celsius temperature during the fall or autumn, is just one of seven in Colorado, known for rocky mountains, great plains, high plains, mesas, canyons, plateaus, rivers and desert lands.
One weekend in September, we had the privilege to be in this dark sky community during the three-day annual activity of the Philippine American Chamber of Commerce of Southern Colorado, Philippine American Chamber of Commerce of Northern Colorado, and the Colorado State Philippine American Chamber of Commerce.
The event, which tackled strategic planning for 2025; board governance, ethics and leadership training; and team building, was held at the Hillside Colorado Vacation Cottages managed by spouses Myron and Rizza Edelman.
Facilitators were Ayana Garcia, Boards and Commissions Program Administrator for the City of Colorado Springs, and May Joyce Vertido, a nurse and a retired Lieutenant Colonel of the US Army.
Relatively young, Westcliffe was recognized as an International Dark Sky Community only nine years ago, in March 2015, by the IDA, along with its neighboring town of Silver Cliff.
The IDA awards this designation to communities that reduce light pollution and enforce outdoor lighting ordinances, according to officials.
Westcliffe and Silver Cliff raised funds and replaced their street and government lighting with lower light polluting fixtures.
Both communities are in the Wet Mountain Valley, between the West Mountain and Sangre de Cristo mountain ranges, an area in the mainland noted for its spectacular views of the Milky Way, something we experienced while we were here.
It is during fall or autumn when stargazing can be, as residents say, a celebration of the return of dark nights, with first rate constellations, planets and galaxies to see in the Colorado sky.
Westcliffe during that weekend, with no light pollution and pristine skies, allowed visitors like us to see uncountable thousands of stars — the stars being bright including the smaller ones visible to the naked eye.
Westcliffe and Silver Cliff, according to our hosts, are among the highest in the world, known for their views of the Milky Way, even from the Main Street.
The Smokey Jack Observatory in Westcliff has a powerful telescope and hosts star parties in the summer, official sources say.
Why are dark sky communities germinating following the first certification of Flagstaff, Arizona as the First International Dark Sky City in 2001?
Climatologists say dark sky communities are important for climate change because they help lessen light pollution which can raise several negative consequences.
According to experts, light pollution can disrupt the body’s natural 24-hour cycle, which can lead to sleep disorders like insomnia and delayed sleep-phase syndrome.
It can also impact the production of melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate metabolism and immune responses.
Experts add outdoor lighting in the United States consumes a lot of energy, equivalent to driving 49 million passenger vehicles per year and switching to LED lights in every home could save about 38 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.
Light pollution can also affect animals active at night, like bats, owls and frogs which can make it more difficult for them to hunt, feed and mate.
Light pollution can also interfere, experts say, with the natural rhythms of the night, which can impact the health of the ecosystem.
According to www.darksky.org, the worldwide Dark-Sky Movement aims to reduce light pollution and preserve the night sky with the IDA working to protect communities from light pollution through outreach, advocacy and conservation.
There are those who ask: Is it really worth having dark sky communities?
Many climatologists say yes, and argue the conservation benefits include reducing deaths of migratory birds, turtles and other species who interact with the natural night sky, support the pollination of plants and the recovery of plant and tree species.
