CABANA DE BERGANTIÑOS, 13/06/2024. Costa da Morte Tourist Association (CMAT) has organised, with the collaboration of the Cabana de Bergantiños Town Council and the co-financing of the Provincial Council of A Coruña and CMAT itself through the aids to tourist management bodies in the province, an information day to raise awareness among mayors, technical staff and businessmen of the Costa da Morte about the problem of light pollution.
This event, held on Wednesday night in the emblematic dolmen of Dombate, included presentations by specialists in the fields of physics, public lighting and tourism. It was attended by the mayors of the 17 municipalities of the Costa da Morte tourist geodestination, as well as their technical staff and representatives of the businessmen of the Costa da Morte through the board of the Association of Tourism Professionals of the Costa da Morte (APTCM).
The need to raise awareness about Light Pollution
The event was opened by the president of the CMAT, Manuel Muíño, who wanted to remind that this type of conference “is useful for all of us, public and private sector, to raise awareness about the problem of light pollution. It is important to listen to the experts and to let ourselves be advised by the professionals who work in this sector on a daily basis”.
After the first intervention, it was the turn of physicist Jorge Mira, Professor of Applied Physics at the USC, who emphasised the need to reduce light pollution to improve health and general wellbeing: “This problem goes beyond the field of tourism, it has to do with people s wellbeing. It is a problem that needs to be tackled, because a dark night is part of the natural human cycle. This is why it is important to control it.
The presentations by Susana Malón, CEO of Lumínica Ambiental, and Miguel Barcelona, National Director of maintenance and energy efficiency at Ingesan, were also very illustrative. The former dedicated her turn to the more technical aspects of public lighting and the latter to advising attendees on the advantages that an energy services company (ESCO) can offer when it comes to modifying public lighting so that local councils can be more sustainable and efficient.
A round table on the opportunities of astro-tourism
After the speeches, it was the turn of a round table on the opportunities that astrotourism offers for the Costa da Morte as a Starlight Destination, with the participation of Jorge Mira himself; Marta Rodríguez, from the CMAT Technical Secretariat and José Muíño, Mayor of Cabana de Bergantiños. All three agreed on the good work that CMAT is doing to improve awareness of the opportunities of astro-tourism for the environment. Not only to deseasonalise tourism, but also as a way to raise awareness about the importance of taking care of the night light.
Marta Rodríguez, from the Technical Secretariat of the CMAT and SICTED manager of the Costa da Morte destination, emphasised in this sense that the Costa da Morte “is not only a destination to enjoy the sun and the beach in the months of July and August. We want the Costa da Morte to be more than this, and being a Starlight Destination offers us great opportunities, such as the VII International Starlight Meeting to be held in early October in our territory”.
In fact, in the same dolmen of Dombate, the first meeting with the Starlight monitors of the Costa da Morte had already been held before this day to gather information on the astro-tourism activities that have been set up or are planned for this year 2024. These activities will be included in a report on astro-tourism opportunities in Galician Starlight tourist destinations for the Galician Tourism Agency.
Astrotourism, a challenge and an opportunity for the Costa da Morte town councils
The event was brought to a close by the Mayor of Cabana de Bergantiños, José Muíño, who took a few minutes to warn small town councils of the importance of getting good advice in order to improve their lighting efficiently: “There are specialists with a lot of experience in this field, such as the professionals we heard today, and it is important to get good advice. People will come along and say that white lights are better and cheaper. But we always have to try to make the right investments with the long term in mind. There are aids at different levels of government that can make it easier for us to have more efficient and more environmentally friendly local councils that are friendlier to their neighbours.
This event, attended by representatives of the public and private sector of the Costa da Morte, whose balance of the event was very positive, is an opportunity to further improve awareness of the opportunities of astro-tourism and its potential for the territory. Furthermore, it is part of an important year for the Costa da Morte as a Starlight Destination, as it will host the VII International Starlight Meeting organised by the Starlight Foundation.
