Weaselhead preservation group seeks nocturnal sanctuary status for Calgary's only 'delta'
The Weaselhead Glenmore Park Preservation Society is working with the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC) to obtain nocturnal sanctuary status for the Weaselhead Flats, according to a local naturalist.
Such a designation would recognize the importance of maintaining dark skies for the variety of wildlife within in the flats, said Sara Jordan-McLachlan, a representative of the Weaselhead preservation society.
At an event to recognize World Migratory Bird Day on Saturday, she told Postmedia the preservation society will first have to submit an application to the RASC, before the two organizations collaborate on a joint application to the city.
'We'll need city approval so it's about working with the city as well to make sure they're on board, because ultimately, it's their park to manage,' she said.
'They would give us the approval to designate that as a nocturnal sanctuary and then we'd be in charge of managing it.'
The Weaselhead Flats are a natural area, located in southwest Calgary, at the mouth of where the Elbow River flows into the Glenmore Reservoir.
The flats are technically Calgary's only 'delta' — a geographical landform created where a river slows as it spills into a standing body of water. In the case of the Weaselhead, when the river reaches the flats, it deposits sand and gravel to create a network of bars, channels and marshes.
While the flats have a special protected-area status that prohibits development, the Weaselhead doesn't currently have a nocturnal sanctuary designation as part of its habitat management plan, according to Jordan-McLachlan.
She noted there have been some rumblings about adding lighting fixtures to the cycling and walking path that cuts through the flats, which she warns would be harmful for birds and other wildlife.
'That's our biggest challenge — keeping that dark,' she said. 'But otherwise, no development can happen in that area.'
A park in the Calgary region that currently has nocturnal sanctuary status is the Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation Area, located just south of city limits in Foothills County. The sprawling area received nocturnal preserve designation in 2015, according to the RASC's website.
There are numerous ecological benefits to keeping a natural area devoid of artificial light, said Jordan-McLachlan, who is also a representative of Bird Friendly Calgary.
Through her involvement with the local avian advocacy group, Jordan-McLachlan has advocated for stronger protection for birds during the spring and fall migratory seasons, such as educating residents of high-rises to turn off their lights at night to help prevent window strikes.
McLachlan-Johnson said Bird Friendly Calgary hasn't formally lobbied the city to enact a lights-out policy or bylaw, which is a measure that some U.S. cities, like Baltimore and Chicago, have introduced. Instead, their advocacy has focused on education.
'A lot of people have the perception that lights mean safety,' she said. 'It's working on these different issues to realize the lights are not actually providing that safety. They're increasing light pollution which affects our circadian rhythms in addition to harming migratory birds that try to use the night sky to navigate.
'There are a lot of different facets to it and a lot of education and political will that is needed.'
sstrasser@postmedia.com
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