As beautiful as Colorado is during the day, some of its real beauty comes out at night, when the state’s legendary dark skies really open up. I wrote about Colorado’s nocturnal elegance in an article back in July of last year.
A petition drive is underway as the first step in creating a new “Dark Skies” license plate in Colorado. The effort was initiated by DarkSky Colorado, a chapter of DarkSky International, which is “dedicated to reducing light pollution and preserving the natural night sky for future generations,” according to their petition on Change.org.
The organization says, “To further our mission and increase awareness about the detrimental effects of light pollution, we propose the creation of a special group license plate. This unique license plate will not only help spread awareness across the state but also provide critical funding to support initiatives aimed at reducing light pollution in Colorado.”
According to Colorado Springs photographer and DarkSky Colorado board member Mike Pach, who also initiated the petition drive, at least 3,000 signatures of Colorado registered vehicle owners are needed on a petition to meet the initial requirements for a special license plate, which can only be requested by a registered non-profit organization. After approval by the Colorado Department of Revenue, legislation will need to be passed to finally authorize the plate.
The board of DarkSky Colorado will determine how much of a donation to the organization will be required to acquire a certificate to have the plates issued to the donor by the Department of Motor Vehicles, said Pach. “We hope to fund things like educational programs, the DarkSky certification program and possibly lighting retrofitting for entities that want to convert to dark-sky friendly lighting.” Pach said DarkSky Colorado hopes to get the license plate authorized during next year’s legislative session.
Signing the petition does not obligate anyone to actually get the license plate, just indicates support for it. More information is on the DarkSky Colorado website.
Bob Falcone aka “Hiking Bob” has been a Colorado Springs resident for more than 30 years. A retired career firefighter and U.S. Air Force veteran, Bob is an avid hiker & outdoorsman. Bob spends his days traveling around Colorado and the American Southwest searching for hiking and photography opportunities and adventures, often with his loyal companion Coal the dog. Be sure to check out Hiking Bob’s website and podcast.
