At the Indy 500 yesterday thousands of balloons were released as part of another useless tradition that continues annually at this waste-riddled event. I saw a number of activists’ tweets speaking up against this criminal act that is dubbed ceremonious, a release, an acceptable part of an event. I commented that, by law, the people responsible for littering thousands of balloons must be fined and charged. If it didn’t look so harmless that would be the case. This is a popular sentiment but for one naysayer who defended the tradition simply because he believes “pollution from coal kills more birds than these balloons.”
The argument for why balloon releasing is acceptable has no rationale and in the face of all the destruction being done systematically there is no reason to ignore one form of harm over another. There is much to address and change worldwide and standing up for balloons over coal simply gave me the opportunity to point out the damage of carbon emissions from these motor races. I didn’t get into the nitty-gritty surrounding the rest of the scrap that comes from big-budget, high-profile events, where plastic is the currency and waste the reward. If they were to take the trash from the event and scatter it across the country the effect would only appear differently in its execution and would be condemned, but ultimately it would be the same thing. How can governments be so scrupulous as to spell out laws against littering but exclude this white elephant in the sky? As I have banged on about before, the balloons are only a part of the problem. Why are we still depleting helium in these futile uses, disposable decorations that we actively scatter across the globe, creating some sort of lucky draw as to where the devastation lands, a craps table where public figures cheer as trash disappears to an infinite number of destinations. If only they would come down as they go up, if only the race were interrupted by rains of balloons, roads closed by flaccid plastic, coating sidewalks, gardens and swimming pools, with trees bedecked by deflated balloons… Then maybe people would call this act what it is: criminal.
I wrote ‘What goes up’ in 2014, spelling out why balloon releases should be banned. At the time I was battling to convince a small organisation to replace a balloon release with something less harmful. It took threats and pleas and it was unfortunate that it was the threats that got the desired results, as I would have hoped logic and reason would suffice. Littering is illegal and to do so intentionally and publicly must incur a fine, a penalty dependent on the severity. Releasing thousands of balloons into the air is the worst littering offence one can do. I threatened that if they went ahead with the balloon release, I would ensure that they incur the full penalty of the littering offence. This small event no longer pollutes with hundreds of balloons, yet it is acceptable that today thousands are released to kick off a race. I find it baffling that this is not by law, outlawed. I can’t comprehend how reporters could condone and compliment a reckless custom that should be obsolete.
It is 2018. As the world slowly phases out single use plastics and the environmental voice, warning against the numerous clear and present dangers the earth is facing, is taken only slightly more seriously, the despicable balloon offences continue. Surely First World countries know better and do better, surely the obvious fact that this is nothing more than littering on a grand scale is not something I need to spell out.
There are campaigns against McD’s balloon giveaways because these child lures have a tendency to go up, within moments of being handed out, and come down far away. Thousands of McD balloons have been collected from pristine beaches and nature reserves around the world. Whether they float or not, free balloons on plastic sticks or filled with helium should be banned. One child and one balloon at a time creates international damage. Why then are there no legislative measures to stop these high-volume balloon releases? As I keep repeating, there is no such thing as away. What goes up must come down somewhere. What looks pretty going up, brings only waste and peril coming down. When will we see this for what it is? It is time that this ceremonial littering is stopped.
Image: Blue Planet Society @Seasaver
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