A local council has banned balloons from all its locations, dealing a blow to locals and tourists.
Byron Shire Council in northern New South Wales played spoilsport on Tuesday with the announcement of a ban on its indoor and outdoor sites, including playgrounds, sports facilities, swimming pools, parks and even mailboxes and street posts. .
It was part of a recent crackdown on single-use plastic and other common trash items, such as records, ribbons and strings tied to balloons, glitter, confetti, streamers, tinsel, party poppers and glow sticks.
The ban extends to biodegradable balloons and all helium, latex and water inflatables.
Balloons are a danger to native seabirds and other marine species such as turtles, according to Mayor Michael Lyon, who insists the ban is “the right thing to do.”
Party balloons will be banned from all Byron Shire Council-owned sites in northern New South Wales. In the photo, bathers at the tourist spot.
“We know balloons are one of the deadliest types of debris affecting Australian seabirds and other marine life, including turtles, which eat burst balloons because they look like jellyfish,” Cr Lyon said.
‘If balloons and party decorations end up in our oceans and waterways and cause harm to our precious marine life, we need to take strong and immediate action to prevent this from happening.
“It’s what our community expects and it’s absolutely the right thing to do.”
Surprisingly, Byron Bay Bang Bang Balloons owner Lily Boyau supported the ban.
“This ban should be the way of the future because no one needs to release balloons into the environment for any reason,” he told the Daily Telegraph.
“We do not support launching helium balloons anywhere.”
Several northern NSW councils have banned party balloons from their sites due to environmental concerns.
Byron Bay Mayor Michael Lyon said deflated balloons are a danger to native seabirds and marine life such as turtles.
Bang Bang Balloons sends workers to collect your balloons after an event and send them to TerraCycle for recycling.
The store also recommends less harmful holiday alternatives including flowers, fairy lights, ornaments, lanterns, bubbles, kites, pinwheels and ribbon wands.
“Many local events and venues have already taken the step of removing some of these elements, and this is just the next phase with Byron leading the way,” Cr Lyon added.
The nearby Ballina Shire has a similar ban which came into force last year.
Neighboring Tweed Council also announced a complete ban on balloons which came into effect in January 2023.
“Balloons, once a holiday staple, have been found to wreak havoc on animals and marine life,” the council said at the time.
“Whether foil, latex or so-called environmentally friendly materials, all balloons have the potential to cause damage to our local ecosystems.”
Even biodegradable products can take years to break down; during that time, they can be devastating to animals who swallow parts of them or become entangled in the threads to which they are often tied.’
The city council had already banned the use of helium balloons in its territory last September.
It says this was in line with the NSW government’s ban on single-use plastics, which includes items such as plastic containers and cups, stirrers and plastic microbeads.
The balloon ban was announced in response to concerns about birds and marine life.
