Balloons can't stop bullets

Gun violence is rarely far from the headlines — and it’s never far from the hearts of those affected by it. As a mother with a personal connection to the massacre at Oxford High School in Michigan, I understand the need to honor those lost to such shootings and to do all we can to prevent other tragedies. Events like Balloons to Heaven Day (Aug. 6) seek to do that.

But helium balloons never actually make it to heaven. They fall back to Earth —deflated or in pieces — as litter, every time. And when they do, they cause additional suffering and needless deaths. This seems quite different from what participants intend or want.

When balloons descend from the sky, they go wherever the wind takes them. Colorful pieces of latex land in the ocean and are eaten by sea turtles who mistake them for jellyfish; their ribbons get stuck in trees, where birds, squirrels and other animals become entangled in them; and pieces of them land in pastures, where grazing animals ingest them.

Experts list balloons among the items that are most deadly to marine wildlife. One study showed that a “biodegradable” balloon still retained its elasticity after 12 months in seawater. Shiny Mylar balloons last for years.

Last year, a young Gervais’ beaked whale was spotted struggling and rolling around in the surf off Emerald Isle, North Carolina. Soon after she washed ashore, she died. A team of scientists later determined what killed her: a Mylar balloon crumpled in her stomach. They suspected that because she also had milk in her stomach, she was still nursing and was just starting to learn how to find her own food when she ate the balloon.

A study published in the journal Scientific Reports found that balloon litter is the plastic debris that poses the highest risk to seabirds. During an examination of more than 1,700 deceased seabirds, researchers concluded that balloons or balloon fragments killed nearly one in five of those who swallowed them.

Balloons are dangerous for land animals, too. In Garden Valley, California, a nursing mother cow died from ingesting a balloon. Her young calf was found bellowing beside her body. A balloon may seem small compared to a cow, but it can easily suffocate one of these animals if inhaled or cause a blockage in the digestive tract, leading to starvation and death, if ingested.

Balloon releases have also harmed humans. After Cleveland’s Balloonfest released 1.5 million balloons, they drifted back over the city, falling and causing numerous traffic accidents. They also littered the surface of Lake Erie, preventing the Coast Guard from finding two people who had fallen off a boat. In another case, a bunch of helium balloons is thought to have caused a fatal plane crash that started a 50-acre brush fire near Brea, California. And the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has stated, “Of all children’s products, balloons are the leading cause of suffocation death.”

Although several U.S. states have banned mass balloon releases, balloons don’t follow any laws other than the laws of gravity. They can travel for miles, often landing far away. After elementary school children in England released 300 balloons with notes written on them, people found these balloons in Denmark and the Netherlands. One of them traveled all the way to New South Wales, Australia, more than 10,500 miles away. It’s anyone’s guess how many animals died due to eating or becoming entangled in the balloons that weren’t found.

Fortunately, there are many ways to honor loved ones, raise awareness and deliver messages to heaven without endangering animals or polluting the planet. Planting a tree, attending or hosting a march for nonviolence or spending a day volunteering are just a few meaningful alternatives. You could even clean up a beach or natural area in a loved one’s memory. And if you hear about an event that uses balloons, please share this information. You just might save a life.

Melissa Rae Sanger is a licensed veterinary technician and a staff writer for the PETA Foundation, 501 Front St., Norfolk, VA 23510; www.PETA.org.