NO BALLOON RELEASE IN NEWARK, NJ: MAYOR BARAKA AND CITY COUNCIL

TELL MAYOR BARAKA AND THE NEWARK CITY COUNCIL TO CANCEL THE DEC. 30, 2020 BALLOON RELEASE, part of a Covid-19 Memorial. TELL THEM TO LIGHT A CANDLE INSTEAD - WHICH WON'T POLLUTE THE ENVIRONMENT AND KILL WILDLIFE:

Balloon Releases cause airborne litter and kill marine animals. Whales, dolphins, seabirds (including cranes, gulls, gannets and albatross), endangered sea turtles and more have been found with balloon fragments or even whole balloons ingested, or wrapped and entangled around their bodies. The Sea Turtle Foundation estimates that 100,000 marine mammals and turtles and 1 million sea birds die every year from ingesting or becoming entangled in balloon debris.

20 cities and towns in New Jersey have already BANNED THE RELEASE OF BALLOONS - including Atlantic City, Cape May, N. Wildwood, Avalon, Asbury Park, Brigantine, Margate, Ventnor, Sea Isle City, Stone Harbor, Tinton Falls, Egg Harbor, Long Beach Township, and more. The New Jersey State legislature has even introduced bills - now pending - to ban balloon releases in the state.

From the BALLOON RELEASE BAN in YONKERS, NY (Passed April, 2020):
"The City Council finds that latex and Mylar balloons are the most common form of floating garbage within 200 miles of the American shorelines, and that balloons are listed as the most dangerous debris item as they are frequently mistaken by sea life as food, as determined by the Ocean Conservancy. Balloons are composed of materials that cannot be digested by marine and animal life, causing animals to either choke on the balloon or create an intestinal obstruction, which will kill the animal. Balloon ribbons similarly have been found to be hazardous, as they can choke or entangle animals in a manner that limits their mobility.... Prohibiting the intentional release of helium-filled balloons will reduce the amount of debris in waterways and protect the environment. Balloons waste natural resources, litter our communities, and pollute our environment."

WHY IS NEWARK FLOUNTING THE LAWS OF NEIGHBORING MUNICIPALITIES, POLLUTING THE ENVIRONMENT, WILLING TO CAUSE THE DEATHS OF COUNTLESS MARINE ANIMALS AND BIRDS, AND DISPLAYING APATHY TOWARD PENDING STATUTES OF THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY - LAWS CREATED TRYING TO DO "THE RIGHT THING" FOR THE EARTH?

Just a few seconds after a balloon is released, it disappears, only to burst some minutes or even hours later, then fall to the earth usually in pieces with strings attached. More than 70% of the time, these balloons, fragments and ribbons fall on bodies of water - oceans, lakes, rivers - where hungry wildlife mistake them for jellyfish or plankton. Dead wildlife have been found with balloons, whole or fragmented, in their bodies, which have blocked digestive processes and killed them in an agonizing death of starvation and toxicity.

Balloon fragments, ribbons and strings are a main component of the marine litter polluting our oceans and collected during BEACH CLEANUPS every year. Volunteers and non-profit organizations are compelled to "CLEAN UP THE MESS" caused by the thoughtless, apathetic ignorance of balloon releases.

We don't believe Mayor Baraka and the Newark City Council are apathetic to the plight of marine life and our environment at the hands of man-made pollution, but we believe there's no excuse for this action. In fact, we are calling on MAYOR BARAKA and the NEWARK CITY COUNCIL to REMEDY THE LEGAL DEFICIT AND BAN BALLOON RELEASES, and create an EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM in every school informing youth of the hazards of the causes of pollution, much of which is preventable through actions and laws that include a BAN ON BALLOON RELEASES.

Together let's stop the Newark Balloon Release on December 30, 2020. No balloon releases for any memorial services – or any other cause – in Newark or anywhere.