Island Life Magazine Ltd December/January 2018 | Page 82
Country life
Countryside news
By Tony Ridd
Dark Wight Skies
Dark Skies are special areas
across the world where there
are low levels of light pollution.
When there is an absence of
light pollution, thousands of
stars are revealed at night, which
is beneficial to the wildlife and
tranquillity of an area as well as
providing an out of season boost
for tourism.
We are lucky that much of the Isle of Wight
has a high quality of night sky. This is
especially apparent within the Isle of Wight
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (IW
AONB).
Working together, IW AONB along with the
Vectis Astronomical Society (VAS), Campaign
to Protect Rural England (CPRE) and the
Isle of Wight Society have been successful
in their quest to achieve international
recognition for the Island’s night sky.
Visitors already come to the Island for
Star Gazing, and the Dark Wight Skies
recognition shows that the Island is a world-
class destination to see Dark Skies. This
will boost out-of-season tourism because
the best time to observe the night sky is
between October and March.
Joel Bateman from the IW AONB said:
“We feel it would be hugely beneficial for
both human and wildlife tranquillity to
reduce light pollution across the Island, not
just within protected areas. There are real
opportunities to improve the night time
environment for all residents - moths, bats
and badgers included - as well as boosting a
very exciting tourism opportunity”.
For more detail please contact IW AONB on
01983 823855 or [email protected]
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www.visitilife.com
Picture by Chad Powell
Sandown Community
Orchard bears fruit
One of our favourite sites, that we
look after, is Sandown Community
Orchard and Wetland Walk.
This is a fantastic place for people
to “dip their toe’ into experiencing
nature. But, it is far too wet in winter.,
so we are putting in a boardwalk,
some new benches, a board telling
the story of the site and improving
the hedges.
We also want to get more people to
use it, so we can show people what
it has to offer, and maybe how they
can use the free fruit! Thanks to a
National Lottery Grant we received,
we will be bringing this beautiful site
into tip-top condition. Work will take
place this winter and the first half
of 2018. Look out for more updates
at www.gifttonature.org.uk