Weißbach becomes Salzburg’s first certified star park

Weißbach bei Lofer in Salzburg has become the state’s first certified star park, ORF reported. Dark Sky International issued the certificate in the US state of Arizona, recognising the municipality’s exceptionally dark nights and clear views of the stars.

Austria previously had only two such parks: the Attersee-Traunsee region in Upper Austria and Eisenwurzen in Lower Austria.

The Weißbach nature park is sparsely populated and includes one of Austria’s darkest municipal areas. To meet the certification requirements, the municipality reduced street lighting to about half its previous intensity and switched off lamps in remote locations.

The areas around Birnhorn, the Reiter Alps, the Diesbach reservoir and Hirschbichl, an old mountain pass between Pinzgau and the Berchtesgaden region, are also considered particularly secluded.

The nature park worked for two years to secure the award, said managing director Sandra Uschnig. “You have to submit and prove quite a lot. There is a lot of work behind it,” she said.

Weißbach in the Saalach Valley has promoted low-impact tourism for decades. The municipality is also home to the Austrian Alpine Club Youth’s international outdoor sports camp, known as Ferienwiese.

Wolfgang Fegg of the tourism association said the certificate could attract more climbers, other mountain sports enthusiasts, nature visitors, scientists and amateur photographers to Weißbach and the surrounding mountains. “We are not Disneyland, but are trying to highlight our connection with nature. This certificate fits perfectly with that,” he said.