Since 2016, community development group Naseby Vision Incorporated Society, which represents more than 380 Naseby residents, holiday home owners, business people and farmers, has been pursuing a southern hemisphere first - International Dark-Sky (IDA) accreditation as a community.
At present New Zealand has three IDA accredited sites - a dark sky reserve in the Mackenzie Basin and two sanctuaries above Great Barrier Island and Stewart Island.
If successful, the Dark Sky Accreditation (Community) would be the first of its type in New Zealand.
The Central Otago District Council’s (CODC) proposed plan change 22, to be discussed at tomorrow’s council meeting, would see provisions laid out in the district plan protecting the quality of Naseby’s dark skies through the establishment of lighting codes, local monitoring of compliant outdoor lighting codes, and increasing awareness of light pollution.
These would come into effect when new development in the area was proposed.
In a report to the council, principal policy planner Ann Rodgers said Naseby Vision had undertaken a comprehensive process with the community and the IDA, and provided a considerable amount of information upon which to base a new chapter in the District Plan.
The proposed rules would not impact on existing lighting arrangements and would ensure the "quality of the dark skies currently enjoyed by the Naseby community and visitors to the area would be protected for the benefit of existing and future generations", she said.
Council staff have initiated engagement with iwi authorities through Aukaha and would continue to do so prior to the plan change being notified.
In 2018 a report "Dark Sky New Zealand (DSNZ)" stated the sky quality of Naseby was "top tier" and noted Naseby sat well in comparison with the IDA accredited Aotea/Great Barrier Island Reserve, and the Aotaki Mackenzie/Tekapo Sanctuary.
Meanwhile, the small South Westland town of Okarito also wants to become the first dark sky community and a proposal was put to the Westland District Council last week. Surrounded by a national park, the township has just 32 residents and has no street lighting.
