To think mass balloon releases are selfish and should be banned?

[QuestionableMouse]

I've just heard about a mass balloon release in memory of some teens who were killed in a car accident. I hate them and think they're selfish; they're so damaging to the environment (ingesting balloons or the string can lead to a horrible death for both farm and wild animals, including marine life.)

The emoting behind them is lovely, but I hate the fact that they're essentially delayed littering. Releasing bubbles or seeds can do the same thing but without killing wildlife!

I agree with the OP. They probably look fantastic when they are released but they don't half make a mess.

I'd not heard of the balloons that contain wildflower seeds. These do sound better but only a bit. There are plenty of places (like the coast) where a generic wildflower mix doesn't belong. There are cases of guerrilla gardening which introduce species that don't belong and push out those that do. If people want to sow wildflowers, there are mixes specifically designed for particular regions and areas.

As said above environmentally friendly us the way forward but to berate the sentiment behind the balloon release is pretty insensitive to say gbd least.

Why? I am not saying their grief isn’t valid or they aren’t suffering. I think they should find a different way of expressing their grief, one that doesn’t cause harm and further suffering.

What is the sentiment behind a ballon release anyway? Sending them up to heaven or god in the sky? willing to bet most who do balloon realeases are athiests or do not genuinely believe they get anywhere close to heaven.

THEy are just litter. To me it’s pretty disrespectful to a dead person- lets create lots of litter, and kill a few animals in your name...

If balloon releases were not permitted, sentiment would naturally find expression in other ways.

Regulation would be easy enough - there are already by-laws against littering. Policing would be impossible, as low priority and insensitive.

So, the only way forward would be a public awareness campaign by something like a coalition of the Environment Agency, Wildlife organisations, the Farmers' Union and local authorities, to try to make 'delayed littering' unacceptable in the same way that dog fouling has become so in many areas.

Not only dangerous to wildlife, but also to planes: www.news1130.com/2018/01/27/uk-party-balloons-endanger-private-cessna-jet-in-near-miss/

Please don't release balloons.

It's damaging to the environment and I don't think you're wrong or unreasonable. However, if someone told me they were planning to do this in memory of a loved one I'd keep my mouth shut because it's not appropriate and certainly wouldn't be an appropriate time to voice that opinion.

Most people wish to help and care for the environment in anyway they can.

If only...

Horrible. Should be banned. I hate balloon releases with a passion.

Marine turtles mistake the half-submerged balloons for jellyfish and eat them - with fatal consequences.

I can’t believe people still do this, it’s just so damaging

YANBU but people seem to think grief entitles you to pretty much do what you want.
There's so many other things they could do but apparently littering in someone's memory is the ultimate mark of respect...

I agree.

There's so much information and awareness about how problematic it is, I deffo think YANBU

The last thing you'd want is to think your act of memory killed some other living creature or took us all one microstep closer to extinction.

Even the 'biodegradable' ones are made of latex and can take up to 4 years to degrade, they don't just land and dissolve.

Scuzzlet so you think it is OK for wildlife to die from an ingested burst balloon?

There are far more environmentally friendly and wildlife friendly ways to remember people. Get a grip yourself!

Yanbu, it's horrible for the environment. Of course they're grieving etc but this kind of thing can be replaced with more environmentally friendly tributes.

I'm against them also. Pretty litter is still litter.

I hate to burst your bubble @Bumblebee35 but they're not environmentally friendly at all: balloonsblow.org/latex-balloons-still-kill/

Animals (both wild and farmed) die from ingesting balloons.

I'm totally against them. There are plenty of ways to remember people whithout doing something so toxic and harmful.

*Yes you are BU. Let them release their balloons in memory of their friends. So selfish to grieve for a lost loved one...

Why are you even posting this on here. Get a grip.*

Oh. ok then. Well, I'm sad that my dad died. Think I'll go set fire to a tree in his memory. That makes as much sense.

I agree with OP.Maybe selfish wouldn't be my chosen word.But in recent years the growth of a site of a tragic accident turning into some sort of mass shrine puzzles me ,and I hate to see all the tatty balloons and shredded plastic wrappers from flowers still flapping around,blowing about weeks later.Was it the death of Princess Diana that started the compulsion for relative strangers to place flowers, and balloons? Because I really believe from the huge volume of these left it's not all immediate family and friends.Of course I feel shocked,saddened by tragic accidents,one happened in our neighbourhood recently but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be placing flowers and balloons. Our nearby woodland and fields are already strewn with with the rubbish.All my friends and family know I'm a huge litter warrior -I hate it -and the last thing I would want is future rubbish left in my memory.Tragic as accidents are the balloons are not the only way to show respect, pay tribute,express grief and I for one would love a ban.When our much loved dog died an acquaintance gave me a lantern to send up in the sky.I didn't care if I caused offence,but said no way would I use it and explained why.Plus for me it felt mawkish,overly sentimental and inappropriate. I still miss that dog years later,but launching a lantern into the sky just seemed barmy tbh.

100% behind you OP.

The best way to honour death is celebrate life. Our planet gives us that and it is a precious resource.

I might sound heartless and miserable here but I never understood what the point is in releasing balloons. In my mind it’s not going to ease your actual grief or increase your happiness. I’d like to see them banned together with the Chinese lanterns.
A couple of years ago we found the remains of a balloon in our field (with livestock in it) with a note attached. It was written by a child and had a school’s address stamped on it (city school 30odd miles away). My 9 year old wrote a letter to the school pointing out the environmental impact and talked about it at her next eco assembly. At our school we aren’t even allowed to have our engine running in the car park at pick up or drop off😀

Biodegradable balloons with compostable ribbons aren't as environmentally friendly as the companies that make them like to say they are.

However, I wouldn't say anything about the effect on the environment to people who are grieving.

Let them have their balloon release.

reallyanotherone Bravo and well said.

I'm against them, not so much for environmental reasons, even though I'm trying to go as zero waste as I can, but for humanitarian reasons. The world is fast running out of helium and it's a crucial element of medical scanners. If all the helium is used up in fripperies like balloons, the next set of car accident victims, who are holding onto life by a thread and need all the medical diagnostic technology the hospital can throw at them, might be denied their life all for the sake of a balloon.

Pretty litter is still litter.

This.