Our shared home in Foothills County

Dark Sky Country is the place we call home, where we are passionate about preserving the naturally Dark Skies at night for both people and wildlife. Our DarkSkyCountry.ca website hosts a collaboration of partners originating from the Foothills County Dark Sky Initiative, whooo have joined forces in favour of sharing and growing this initiative.

Dark Sky compatible exterior fixtures

Visit our Projects page to view our latest project: Light Fixture Labeling. We are placing tags on Dark Sky compatible exterior light fixtures in our local building stores. We hope this will help citizens to identify the exterior fixtures that will reduce light pollution and still achieve their goals of providing light at night when and where needed.

You can make a difference

You can help reduce light pollution by using outdoor light at night only when needed and at the appropriate lighting level. Use fully shielded, light efficient fixtures aimed directly at the ground. Incorporate timers and sensors to shut off lights when not needed. Check out our Resources page to learn more about Dark Sky friendly exterior lighting choices.

Whooo we are ...

The Dark Sky Initiative is an effort made by government and non-government organizations to put into place guidelines, policies and education materials that will minimize light pollution. This initiative will aid residents, businesses, organizations and institutions within Foothills County in becoming more conscious of the nighttime environment and how it can be adversely affected.

Preserve naturally Dark Skies

Our goal is to create awareness about naturally Dark Skies in a friendly manner to help protect the night sky through education and the offer of practical solutions, in addition to recognizing the Foothills County Dark Sky Bylaw. We hope to lead people to search for information about preserving naturally Dark Skies, to view our beautiful universe, and participate in reducing light pollution.

Enhanced preservation areas

Foothills County has a Dark Sky Bylaw in place as one way to deal with conflict from nighttime lighting issues. This Bylaw affects all residents, businesses, and institutions in Foothills County and outlines parameters to preserve areas around the observatories. Other municipalities in Alberta are also adopting similar measures. Find the Dark Sky Bylaw here (PDF link).

Click (left) to see larger observatories map.

Reduce light pollution

We care about naturally Dark Skies because we want to help mitigate the effects of light pollution on natural processes, human and animal health, viewing the stars as a part of the enjoyment of country living, and preserving the functioning of the world-class Rothney Astrophysical Observatory, Cross Conservation Area Nocturnal Preserve and Wilson Coulee Observatory. Dark Skies are a result of doing things correctly at the ground level, providing value-for-money illumination that improves visibility, health outcomes and preserves natural and rural values.

Light pollution has consequences

Light pollution is the result of artificial light radiating upward and outward, which decreases visibility at night and wastes energy. Besides sky glow, which typically comes to mind when talking about light pollution, there's light trespass, glare and visual clutter, all of which have real world negative impacts. Light pollution disrupts global wildlife and ecological balance, has been linked to negative consequences in human health, and affects astronomers, scientists and citizens' view of the night sky.

Help us to expand our Dark Sky Initiaive

Our collaboration of organizations, municipalities, interested citizens and Foothills residents have joined together to expand our Dark Sky Initiative. We are a friendly group of volunteers who want to bring this message to our neighbours, friends and communities.

Join us on our mission

You are invited to join us in sharing this message by example, through providing your perspective to your family and friends, or, if you want to go a step further, please join us at an upcoming committee meeting. Contact us here.