Balloons are a common sight at celebrations, but these seemingly harmless decorations contribute significantly to environmental pollution once released or improperly discarded. Understanding their composition and environmental journey reveals their negative impact on wildlife, ecosystems, and infrastructure.
Balloon Composition and Fate
Latex balloons, made from rubber tree sap, are a natural product. Despite their natural origin, they undergo chemical treatment during manufacturing to enhance durability and prevent rapid decomposition. While often marketed as biodegradable, latex balloons can take six months to several years to degrade, especially in marine environments with limited sunlight and oxygen. Some studies suggest they can persist for 15 years or more in aquatic settings.
Mylar balloons, also known as foil balloons, are constructed from a synthetic plastic film called BoPET. This film is coated with a thin metallic layer, usually aluminum, for their shiny appearance and to retain helium. Unlike latex, Mylar balloons are not biodegradable and can persist for decades or centuries, breaking down into smaller plastic fragments.
Harm to Wildlife
Balloons threaten terrestrial and marine wildlife through ingestion and entanglement. Animals often mistake deflated balloons or fragments for food, especially marine species like sea turtles and seabirds, confusing them with prey. Ingesting balloon debris can cause severe internal injuries, digestive blockages, and false fullness, leading to starvation and death. A study on seabirds found soft plastics like balloons were 32 times more lethal than hard plastics when ingested.
Strings and ribbons attached to balloons pose another significant danger through entanglement. Animals can become ensnared, restricting movement, hindering feeding, flying, or swimming, and leading to injuries, strangulation, or drowning. Birds’ feet, wings, and necks are particularly susceptible. Immobility can make them vulnerable to predators or unable to escape hazards. The problem extends beyond marine environments, affecting livestock and wild animals on land.
Wider Environmental Pollution
Beyond direct harm to wildlife, balloons contribute to environmental pollution across ecosystems. Released balloons can travel long distances by wind before falling as litter. This debris accumulates on land, in freshwater systems, and especially in marine environments.
Balloons are consistently found among the top ten types of debris collected during coastal cleanups, with their numbers tripling in the last decade. In the environment, Mylar balloons do not biodegrade but fragment into microplastics. These microplastics can be ingested by smaller organisms, introducing harmful chemicals into the food chain. Even latex balloons, though considered biodegradable, take years to fully break down, acting as unsightly litter and a hazard. Chemical additives and dyes in latex balloons further slow decomposition and leave residues.
Additional Impacts
Mylar balloons pose a risk to public safety and infrastructure due to their metallic coating. When these balloons contact power lines, their conductive properties can cause short circuits, leading to widespread power outages, fires, and injuries. Utility companies frequently report thousands of customer outages annually attributed to Mylar balloons. For example, a utility in New Jersey reported a 26% increase in outages caused by Mylar balloons over a five-year period.
Helium use for balloons carries environmental considerations. Helium is a finite, non-renewable resource with important medical, scientific, and technological applications. Widespread recreational use of helium for balloons contributes to its depletion, diverting it from essential uses.