Jules she/her4d ago

Is it time to ban balloon releases, or indeed balloons altogether?

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/apr/02/the-dark-side-of-the-balloon-boom-is-it-time-they-were-banned

I'd say yes, not just for the rubbish they scatter over the countryside but also because as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has recently hopefully demonstrated, helium is a finite resource with important medical and scientific applications

The dark side of the balloon boom – is it time they were banned?

From balloon arches at parties to mass balloon releases at funerals, these bits of floating rubber and plastic can have disastrous effects on wildlife. As some retailers are refusing to sell them, here are some alternatives

The Guardian
Show threadJules she/her

I've been complaining about balloons for years now, these things can turn up literally everywhere when they finally fall from the sky.

https://tangledbankforaging.co.uk/2018/11/21/out-of-sight-out-of-mind-the-problem-with-balloons/

Out of sight, out of mind: the problem with balloons

The natural world is so busy and full of beautiful, remarkable things to pay attention to that it sometimes causes me problems when I help out at the bushcraft school where I was privileged enough …

Tangled Bank Foraging and Fibre Crafts
Apr 2 at 8:56amWeb
Show threadJules she/her4d ago

And balloons can trap wildlife of literally every size.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd9vq4v4727o

Dozing dormouse found in popped helium balloon in Essex

The tiny creature chooses to hibernate in a deflated balloon in a tree.

BBC News
Show threadPetra van Cronenburg4d ago
@afewbugs This! I find them in the deepest forests of our nature park, on soil, in the water, damaging animals and a source of #microplastics #pollution.
Show threadJanet4d ago
@afewbugs This us a real issue here. I pull them out the hedge or off the field. Really bad for wildlife and my poultry and the neighbours breed Clydesdale horses - one of these can be fatal to them. 😡
Show threadRichard Webb4d ago
@afewbugs https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6965178
Balloon litter, Pentland Hills

Geograph