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What we do International Dark Sky Places

Weißbach Nature Park and Municipality

 Credit: Othmar Ortner

About

The Weißbach Nature Park municipality is located in a broad valley of the Saalach Valley between Saalfelden and Lofer at an elevation of 666 meters above sea level, surrounded by a ring of the most beautiful mountains: the foothills of the Steinernes Meer, the Leoganger and Loferer Steinberge, the Reiter Alpe, and the Hochkalter Group. Here, at the former border station of the Hirschbichl Pass (1,148 m), Salzburg and Bavaria meet.

With 422 residents, it is a small municipality in the state of Salzburg; however, with an area of 69 km² and 26 businesses (about 10 of which are in the restaurant industry), it is by no means small. The Weißbach Dark Sky and Nature Park covers an area of 28 km². It is worth highlighting the collaboration between the Weißbach Dark Sky Community and the Weißbach Dark Sky and Nature Park. 

Weißbach is a vibrant community and, thanks to its particularly livable cultural landscape, is not only a nature park (naturpark-weissbach.at) and a mountaineering village with a vibrant alpine tradition, but also the headquarters of the Climate and Energy Model Region and the LEADER Association for Regional Development (region-pinzgau.at). In addition, Weißbach is considered one of the most energy-efficient municipalities in the State of Salzburg’s e5 program (having actually achieved 5 of the 5 “e”s). Since 2022, the Pinzgau region has also been a Climate Change Adaptation Model Region.

As part of the International Dark Sky Places program, TESS photometers were installed in Weißbach, in the nature park and the municipality, to monitor night sky quality over the long term. The municipality’s public lighting was surveyed, evaluated, and areas were identified where the lighting was turned off. An outdoor lighting guideline was developed, along with a light management plan. The nature park hosts various educational programs on the topics of nighttime and light pollution; in the summer, for example, there is the weekly “On the Trails of Nocturnal Animals” event and the annual “Long Night of the Nature Parks.” Informational signs were created for the campgrounds in the nature park, and a brochure on good lighting practices is currently being developed.

The Weißbach Dark Sky & Nature Park is a 28 km² area that is open to the public (just like a national park). The designation “nature park” is a title awarded to particularly beautiful and valuable cultural landscapes. Since this is a protected area, please respect the residents and wildlife, stay on marked trails and designated stargazing spots, keep dogs on a leash, and avoid artificial light.

Area

Park: 28km2
Community: 69km2

Designated

2026

Category

International Dark Sky Park
International Dark Sky Community

Address

Unterweißbach 36,
5093 Weißbach Weißbach, Österreich, 5093 Austria
Google Maps

Contact

Sandra Uschnig
Dark Sky Park & Nature Park Manager
+43 6582 8352 12 
[email protected]

Dan Oakley
Policy and Destination Senior Manager, DarkSky International
+44 780 357 0818
[email protected]

Documents

Park Application
Community Application
Announcement
Annual Reports

Links

Website: https://www.naturpark-weissbach.at/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naturpark.weissbach/
Instagram: naturpark_weissbach