The following was published recently on Forbes.com.
For some strange reason, people around the world have decided that the best way to mark important holidays and events is to have a public fireworks show. We choose to celebrate the birth of a New Year, the freedom of our nation, the triumph of good over evil, by blowing things up. Most of us are aware that fireworks are dangerous: we either know someone, or know of someone, who ended up in the hospital emergency room due to fireworks, but most people are completely unaware of the more insidious environmental damages and health impacts caused by fireworks.
Basically, a firework is a small pyrotechnic missile that explodes in a very specific way, creating loud explosions and bursts of brightly colored light. But all those brillantly colored explosions are just where the trouble starts. The colors of fireworks are the result of chemistry and physics made visible. Specifically, fireworks’ colors depend upon solid metal salts and chemical explosives (this is the chemistry part) that create colors when heated to the correct temperatures (this is the physics part).
The metal salts and explosives in fireworks undergo chemical changes by combining with oxygen (combustion). This chemical reaction releases smoke and gases such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen, and these are some of the primary greenhouse gases responsible for climate change.
During the explosion, these metal salts do not ‘burn up’. They are still metal atoms, and many of them end up as aerosols that poison the air, the water and the soil. When inhaled or ingested, these metals can cause a huge variety of short- and long-term reactions, ranging from vomiting, diarrhea or asthma attacks, to kidney disease, cardiotoxic effects and a variety of cancers.
Although it’s often overlooked, sudden loud noises, such as those created by fireworks explosions, are a health hazard too. Not only are these sounds inescapable, but fireworks can damage hearing, trigger mental health episodes in those who suffer from PTSD,and can lead to life-threatening injuries to pets, livestock, wildlife and birds.
CE’s is wondering if the benefits outweigh the harm?