Thursday, 28 September 2017
The WA Greens have today applauded the Town of Cottesloe for unanimously voting to ban mass balloon releases, and called on the State Labor government to include similar provisions in their proposed ban on plastic bags.
Environment spokesperson Robin Chapple MLC said mass balloon releases were akin to illegal dumping and should be treated as such by law.
“Every single one of those balloons will eventually come back down to earth as litter, many of them landing in our oceans where threatened marine life such as turtles see them as food,” Mr Chapple said.
“If I were to drive into a national park with a trailer full of organic waste and dump it in the bush I could easily be fined upwards of $10,000, yet I could head out to Horizontal Falls Marine Park tomorrow with a thousand balloons and let them go without a single consequence.
“A single balloon, even one made from natural latex to the highest industry standards, will take at least 5 years and potentially many more to break down whilst a balloon release is enjoyed for just a few fleeting moments.
“It is simply astounding to me, given the impacts that balloons and other plastics are having on our marine life are known, that we have not immediately curtailed such reckless environmental vandalism.
“It is clear that this Government has no interest in supporting the WA Greens ban on single use plastics however we had hoped they would be more open to a discussion with us about amending the legislation to reach a workable compromise.
“From that perspective, I will personally be writing to the Minister for Environment Stephen Dawson this week imploring him to consider including a ban on balloon releases anywhere in Western Australia.”
Media contact
Tim Oliver – 0431 9696 25 // 08 9486 8255
