Should Taos become a ‘dark sky’ county?

One of the many natural wonders of New Mexico is our pristine dark skies, which are enjoyed, not only by those of us who live here, but by many tourists and other visitors to our state. Moreover, numerous scientists, including astronomers, geologists and biologists have come to New Mexico to set up research facilities and other institutions that do contribute to the state’s economy. It makes sense, therefore, to preserve our night skies from excessive artificial lighting.

This is nothing that hasn’t been said before, but it’s a fact that excessive night lighting can have negative effects on the state’s environment. For one thing, polluted night skies can harm wildlife, as most plants and animals depend on earth’s natural cycle of day and night for sleep, nourishment, reproduction and safety from predators. There are volumes of scientific evidence that prove this, and some of what applies to the animals also applies to humans, particularly when it comes to sleep deprivation.

Moreover, bright lights often do not make your home or business any safer. On the contrary, skilled burglars can conceal their activities by prowling in the black shadows between the lights and also behind their excessive glare. Many of these issues can be simply resolved by using outdoor lighting that aims downward, and turning off lights when they’re not needed. This includes both homes and office buildings.

The good news is that there are many areas of New Mexico that have been maximized for dark skies, such as Bandolier, Capulin, Clayton Lake and others, so there’s no reason why parts of Taos County couldn’t do this. What’s more, you don’t need to wait for legislation to be passed. You can begin now to make your own neighborhood dark-sky friendly. There is a specific 2006 Taos County Ordinance regarding night sky protection that has been posted online at taoscounty.org/ DocumentCenter/View/1157/ Ordinance-2006-9-Night-SkyProtection-Act.

There is also a web site, Dark Skies New Mexico at darkskynm. org. The site provides details regarding a number of things that can be done to minimize the effects of bright lighting regarding health, security, motorist safety and home energy. For example, our main street, Paseo del Pueblo, could have its street lights pointing downward. Pedestrians would still be able to see comfortably, and the city could actually save money by not having to spend so much on lighting.

Walking down Paseo del Pueblo Sur on a clear March evening, you can still see the Milky Way and the constellation Orion in the southern sky. Many of us feel it should stay that way, because it’s one of the things that makes Taos and New Mexico unique.