Northumberland County Council reminds residents about the ban on balloon releases and to think of memorial alternatives

Northumberland County Council is one of over 80 local authorities in the UK with a ban in place against the release of balloons and lanterns.

They all follow the Marine Conservation Society’s Don’t Let Go message, which urges people to think twice before releasing balloons and lanterns into the sky, which inevitably come back down and cause fatal injuries to wildlife and marine life who eat or get caught in the debris.

The council’s message follows a balloon release that took place in Northumberland on council land over the weekend.

A spokesperson for Northumberland County Council said: “While balloon or lantern releases are often carried out with good intent, hundreds of balloons released into the sky must come down to earth and can have a long and devastating impact on local marine and wildlife, as well as causing littering.

“Their tattered ends and floating pieces are eaten by wildlife and marine life, or they become tangled in the debris which causes injury, illness and great suffering.

“Balloon releases are banned on county council land and we run social media campaigns to raise awareness of this, encouraging people to think carefully about other less damaging ways to pay tribute to a loved one.

“While we understand completely the wish to mark an occasion, if we hear of a balloon release we try in each circumstance to contact the organiser and work with them, suggesting more environmentally friendly alternatives.”

Examples of alternative memorial ideas include using jam jar lights or fairy lights to stage a beautiful candlelit at vigil at dusk, blowing bubbles to release thousands of bubbles into the sky, organising a memorial walk for a chosen charity or planting a tree or flower bed.

While natural latex balloons are labelled as biodegradable, due to being made from tree sap, the length of time it takes these them to decompose varies based on environmental conditions and can take years. In many cases, the balloons never completely degrade and cause harm to wildlife where they land.