Jules she/her3d 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 threadKim Spence-Jones 🇬🇧😷3d ago
@afewbugs
I’ve been saying this for years. Helium is a finite resource with no known alternatives. It’s important for MRIs, for scientific research, for various industrial processes, and maybe for quantum computing in the future. It’s completely bonkers that we waste it on party balloons.
A ban on frivolous uses of Helium is long overdue.
#Environment #Politics
Show threadMarianne3d ago
@KimSJ @afewbugs balloon sellers, tellingly, insist medical-grade helium being differently sourced or whatever always comes up, but I'm skeptical of that.
Also balloons lead to waste and deadly litter, they frequently kill sea life and land animals, likely much more frequently than we can know.
Absolutely wasteful and shouldn't exist. Nobody needs a balloon.
Show threadJules she/her
@noodlemaz @KimSJ @PhilGopon There's a geologist in another branch saying they are different: https://mountains.social/@PhilGopon/116334575378471609
Apr 2 at 11:01amWeb
Show threadMarianne3d ago
@afewbugs @KimSJ @PhilGopon mmhmm. Still seems like a pointless endeavour coupled with everything else.