"No Shiny Balloons or Colored Paper"... Why Did the US Festival City Issue a Ban?

Year-Round Festival New Orleans Bans Metallic Balloon Origami
Power Outages and Blackouts Occur Due to Contact with Power Lines

Reference photo to aid understanding of the article

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, is a city filled with festivals all year round. Among them, the largest and most famous festival in the United States is Mardi Gras, known for its various parades, costumes, and lively drinking and dancing. However, New Orleans is now banning shiny balloons and confetti.

On the 8th (local time), CNN reported that "New Orleans has banned the use of balloons and confetti due to repeated disruptions to the city's electrical service and sewage system caused by discarded balloons and confetti." Earlier, the city council passed an ordinance last month prohibiting the release of shiny balloons and all balloons coated with metal or other "conductive materials." Purchasing balloons is not prohibited.

Last summer, a power outage occurred when a shiny balloon came into contact with power lines, which also temporarily halted the city's water treatment facility. Additionally, during the carnival festival held in New Orleans in February 2023, confetti cannons were reported to have affected the power outage. A video posted on social media captured a power outage occurring in the parade immediately after a confetti cannon was fired from a cart.

This issue is not unique to New Orleans. Releasing balloons can be a symbolic act for those celebrating or mourning, but it is devastating to the environment. Even biodegradable balloons take about seven years to decompose, and balloon strings themselves are not biodegradable. Improperly discarded balloons can drift along the sea and coastlines, becoming part of marine debris. Wild animals may mistake discarded balloons in the ocean for food and die after ingesting them.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.