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!

These events usually make deaths/ anniversarys and if it helps a grieving person, then I think it's cruel to take that away.

I agree it would be cruel if there was literally no other way to grieve.

Oh no, really? That's sad, I thought the biodegradable ones would work

Totally agree with you, OP. It’s enviromentally disgraceful to litter the 0lace with rubber detritus. Chinese lanterns are awful. They cause serious damage to wildlife, livestock, god knows where they land.

Well, technically, they are biodegradable, but they still take years to do so and some poor animal will choke on them before they do biodegrade.

It's just a label to make people feel better about using them, sadly.

I fail to see the point in seed filled balloons unless yoi plan on rippong them open in a field. Balloons go down over days but they wont burst open unless hit a sharp branch
They will just lie on the ground for months or be eaten by animals just the same as any other balloon

Environmentally friendly baloons dont decompose very quickly either they take about a year.

Same goes for "chinese lanterns' seting fire to crops and barns and littering the countryside.

Their are other ways to commemorate loved ones. Nobody is denying the loss of a loved one but the countryside is littered enough with selfish people throwing stuff away. We dont need to excuse it or 'normalise' it.

Here is no such thing as "biodegradable" plastic, if you think that means it disappears eventually. "Biodegradable" balloons are pure greenwash - they have shown to break down within x amount if time in lab conditions. Out there in the real world it is not a lab. The sea is not a lab, and they last for years. When they do eventually break down, if they haven't been eaten by or choked an animal or bird, they enter the food chain at a base level, after having attracted surrounding pollutants like PCBs.

There are no such thing as biodegradable balloons. Littering is against the law. Balloon releases are just littering.

YANBU OP, I can see why people do balloon releases, but I don’t like them both due to the littering of the balloons and the waste of helium, sending a valuable, finite resource up to space, as mentioned by PPs. I think people need to be educated about both issues.

I think this would be better couched as a call for legislation against helium balloons generally. Then we could have avoided targeting the bereaved, and having to put up with posts about finding public grieving distasteful.

Do they have to be filled with helium in order to float away though? All you need is a bit of breeze and off they go.

Kids would never have thought of balloon releases unless adults had first suggested it, and adults should be aware of the terrible effects the litter has. There's enough bloody publicity out there about it

Absolutely, Greensleeves.

They are released on other occasions as well. I remember reading about a release if pink ones for breast cancer awareness. They are used for parties and weddings.

They should be banned, no matter the occasion.

I agree they should be banned. I would hate anyone to do this for me if I died and I would never take part in one, there are other ways to grieve.

Chinese lanterns should also be banned, anyone letting them off is a selfish idiot.

YANBU. Planting a tree is a much nicer, enduring way to memorialize someone.

My friends greedy and much loved spaniel died after eating a balloon that ended up in their garden. Imagine all the damage done to animals we don't even see.

My DDs school used to do an annual balloon race to raise money. This years was the last one because although it was thought they had addressed all environmental concerns by contacting air traffic control for permission and using biodegradable balloons and labels and no string etc. They were contacted by environmentalists complaining.
On investigation the claims made about the biodegradable nature of the balloons made by the manufacturers don’t really hold up and the school can’t support an activity that kills wildlife.
It’s a shame because it used to raise £1000s for the school but it’s the right choice.

These events usually make deaths/ anniversaries and if it helps a grieving person, then I think it's cruel to take that away.

No it's not. I'm sorry for people suffering the loss of a loved one, but there are many ways to grieve, many ways to remember and causing distress and death to wildlife, potentially causing a fatal crash and littering the environment isn't the way.

Yes it would be very hard to talk to someone when they're about to do it, but perhaps if there was legislation banning it we wouldn't have to.

Agree they should be banned. I can't really understand how they wouldn't already fall under existing littering laws , because unless you own several counties and it's a very still day, you are littering as they will land beyond your property.

The reason they are being released is irrelevant, it's littering. Arguing it's ok because it will help grieving people is like arguing the recent presidents club meet was ok because it was for charity. A good cause doesn't make the act any different.

Bereavement is terrible though, my heart goes out to people who have lost loved ones.

I suppose what I wonder is, where did the idea that balloons are emotionally significant come from and why that? Why not something else? So, what are the harmless yet emotionally satisfying options?

It certainly wasn't long ago that balloons began to be used. In my childhood, 70s - 80s, I only ever heard of them being used, with labels, in 'balloon races' which were a bit like messages in bottles, competitions to see which could travel the furthest.

Balloons seem to have been popularised, along with fireworks and less often doves, as an 'extra novelty' at weddings primarily but other events too, as part of the capitalist expansion of weddings really.

I suppose I thought placing flowers on a grave was the thing to do and what I've done myself. Results in dead flowers but, they do rot. Planting things seems more positive - but where they're wanted, not by scattering seeds where they'll never thrive. Planting commemorative trees is a little more problematic, as they don't always survive. Some charities will let you sponsor an area of woodland, lay a plaque for you, read out a poem, but not link it to a particular tree. I think contributing to the upkeep of a particular site; a nature reserve, park etc would be lovely, as you can always go to that place and remember.

Incidentally, scattering ashes on mountains and in other wild places is a problem too. They change the pH of the soil so kill the plants the place is special for.

While they may be aesthetically pleasing, essentially they are a really fucking stupid idea.

It's flying litter. I'm guessing it's nowhere near as prevalent as floor litter, although that doesn't make it right.

Other possible alternatives are homing white doves, butterflies (seasonal) and kite flying which all have the element of flight but a smaller eco footprint.

Oh dear god not butterflies

So why 'letting things float into the sky'? What's the significance?

If you want more lovely birds or butterflies, or bees or flowers, why not contribute money, or volunteer time, to the upkeep of a nature reserve, or other work of a wildlife charity?

MuddlingThroughLife And BumbleBee

I think the symbolism is pretty obvious, departing spirits, souls ascending etc. It clearly means a lot to some very distressed and vulnerable people, so maybe it would be better to focus on banning helium balloons/Chinese lanterns, because they have a concrete effect on the environment.

YANBU.

Balloons and Chinese lanterns are hideously bad for the environment. There are far less destructive ways to commemorate.

Ursula - would butterflies fuck up the ecosystem or something?