World night-sky reserve bid at Tekapo seeking government backing

The Tekapo and Mt Cook area bid for a world night-sky reserve is seeking government backing to support their project to help it gain UNESCO approval next year.

The New Zealand working party on the world night reserve quest is seeking government endorsement and funding to ensure the Tekapo project bid is successful, working party chairperson and former Cabinet minister Margaret Austin said today.

The newly formed working party involving the Mackenzie Tourism and Development Trust has confirmed its intention to pursue New Zealand’s first starlight reserve in the Lake Tekapo and Mt Cook region.

``We are going to ask for funding and support from the Government and local authority to cover expected costs in the future,’’ Austin said.

``The importance of recognising and protecting the night-sky as a renewable resource and part of the cultural heritage is crucial to this area and to New Zealand. We are very good at promoting tourism in daylight in this country and we need to be just as successful at night to double our business."

The working party plans to keep the local Mackenzie community informed and involved. Government ministers will be contacted with assistance from the local MP Jacquie Dean. The scientific, tourism, educational and cultural interests will be engaged as will the astronomical societies and liaison with international interests will be maintained. The working party will continue to work closely with the starlight reserve project of the UNESCO world heritage group.

Austin said news out of the recent World Heritage Committee meeting in Seville was very positive for the Tekapo starlight reserve project.

``Tekapo was referred to and supported in Seville and we will be included in the thematic study to be finalised at a meeting at La Palma (Spain) in November so that it can be finally presented to the World Heritage Committee at its meeting in 2010.’’

Tekapo is being promoted as a mixed site with nature and biodiversity, exceptional landscapes, cultural aspects, tourism, astronomy and a quality night sky. Tekapo was specifically mentioned by Cipriano Marin, the project leader from La Palma, and by Eduardo Fayos-Sola, of the World Toursim organisation, who visited NZ and Tekapo this year.

The Mackenzie district people have set their sights on seeing this project through to realising their dream of a starlight reserve with international status start to become a reality if the World Heritage Committee accepts the thematic study at their conference in Rio de Janerio next year.

Austin said half the people of the world at present could not see the stars because of night light pollution. With Tekapo by-laws already in place and monitoring the effects on the night sky of further development are not expected to impact on the quality of the night sky which along with increased research activity will allow for astro-tourism to fully develop in the area. Already there are about 1.4 million people through Tekapo annually.

Mt John above the Tekapo township is considered one of the most accessible observatories in the world. The observatory is home to six telescopes including the country's biggest telescope which measures 1.8m across and can observe 50 million stars each clear night.

Graeme Murray, a major driving force behind the Tekapo project, said it would be a positive result for New Zealand and the district to have the Mt John observatory and the Lake Tekapo area confirmed as one of the world's first starlight reserves.