The southern Pinal County area is fortunate to have a reasonably dark nighttime sky to view the stars and other amazing objects. The Pinal County Board of Supervisors and other governments around the world have proclaimed April 13-20 as International Dark Sky Week in which communities worldwide celebrate the opportunity to view the night sky while also emphasizing the destructive nature of light pollution. It may seem harmless, but light pollution has far-reaching consequences for all living things. The SaddleBrooke Skygazers and SaddleBrooke Ranch Astronomy Clubs team with DarkSky International during Dark Sky Week to help members of our community understand that light pollution not only inhibits our view of the night sky, but also disrupts wildlife, impacts human health, wastes money and energy, and contributes to climate change.
It is important to note that not all light is polluting, and “effective outdoor lighting” does NOT mean NO lighting. Light for safety, security and convenience can all be incorporated into an outdoor lighting plan if accomplished in accordance with Pinal County and Architecture Landscape Committee (ALC) guidelines. SaddleBrooke is in a “Low Ambient Light Zone” and the ordinances we have in place were primarily written to accommodate the numerous Astronomy research facilities around the Tucson area (Mt Lemmon, Kitt Peak, Mt Hopkins, Mt Graham and Biosphere 2), many of which are supported by the University of Arizona. Obviously, we have no streetlights or glaring video billboards here that contribute to light pollution. Our homes/facilities were originally constructed to incorporate the low ambient outdoor designs required by county ordinances. As explained in the ALC Guidelines, effective outdoor lighting typically consists of the lowest ambient levels appropriate for the need, downward pointing fixtures and lighting with minimum glare that does not trespass into a neighbor’s area. Unfortunately, over time some of our residents have replaced those low-light fixtures with open, bright fixtures and high luminosity bulbs that are a nuisance to neighbor and could be subject to ALC attention.
Although we have relatively good night skies here in the southern Pinal County area, research has shown that over 80% of the world’s population live under sky glow and residents in those areas cannot observe more than a few bright stars at night, if any at all. Unfortunately, as our population increases, so does the impact of increasing light levels. Below is a short video source that illustrates the effects of light pollution on our night sky and offers solutions. As the video explains, transitioning to effective lighting produces immediate results by reducing the offending light.
youtube.com/watch?v=FW0WZX75Nmo
Join us this April as we “go dark” to explore the night and take action to protect dark skies worldwide.
