The Legislature in Hawaii is currently considering a bill, SB 2365, that proposes to ban consumer fireworks statewide. Below is the testimony that I have submitted for this bill.

I am outraged by the abundance of fireworks and the lack of enforcement of existing laws this past New Year’s Eve (and in the past on New Year’s and July 4th). I support a total ban on fireworks (except for limited use in cultural and religious ceremonies).

I sat in my home in Kailua on New Year’s Eve listening to the sounds of the neighborhood and feeling like I lived in a war zone. It began at sundown and lasted through the night (actually, it began weeks before New Year’s). The use of fireworks in Kailua, and the rest of the island, is simply out of control. Over the past few years, both on July 4th and New Year’s Eve, I’ve been dumbfounded as to how our state allows this to continue. Whatever benefit that a minority of people are deriving from setting off explosives cannot even begin to justify the negative consequences of these fireworks. It has gotten to the point where I hope for torrential rains to thwart the craziness.

At the end of my letter I have included a list of relevant statistics that were compiled by a friend of mine who is an industrial safety expert here on Oahu. I hope these hard facts he has provided will complement my own thoughts.

First and foremost, I believe it is the duty of elected officials to use their powers to protect the public welfare. Fireworks present a clear and present danger to everyone, not just those who use them. I’ve witnessed fires in the middle of the streets from people who leave the smoking remains of their ten second explosive pleasures; cars must swerve to avoid them or wait for them to finish burning. I’ve watched irresponsible parents sit on their lawns as they allow small children to stand by the street and play with fire. Twice, I’ve seen four foot flames rise from busy streets while explosions shot off in all directions as little kids stood next to them. I’ve listened to enormous explosions that cause houses to shake, my neighbors’ babies to cry, our dogs to bark, and car alarms to sound. I’ve had to close the windows to my house to prevent noxious smoke and ash from stinking up my home and hurting my eyes, but usually to no avail.

I ask you this: Will it take an unprecedented disaster before we act to ban fireworks? How many children must lose their fingers or their lives, how many homes must burn before we do something to stop this? I am not being melodramatic; these things happen every year and yet nothing changes. And when the economy gets better and people can afford more fireworks, it’s only going to get worse.

Second, the negative effects of fireworks hardly end when the festivities are over. Fireworks are composed of toxic chemical that pollute our air, contaminate our drinking water, leave trash all over our streets (there is still residue on my street over a month after New Year’s), leave residue in our watershed thus harming plants and animals, and contribute to marine debris that threatens the health, safety, and aesthetics of our beaches and coasts. This results in violations of the Clean Air Act and a number of other environmental laws. Please see the link below for more information. This is a very bad thing for our State, particularly when we claim to be stewards of the environment or position our state as eco-friendly. http://environment.about.com/od/healthenvironment/a/toxicfireworks.htm

Third, there seems to be almost no enforcement of fireworks laws. I suspect this is a very difficult thing to do as someone must be caught in the act, which is why I am in support of a ban. People who were launching loud aerials evaded arrest all night long even though they were clearly coming from the same locations, over and over, hour after hour. I made several calls providing locations of these violations, but nothing changed. As a relevant aside, on New Year’s the Secret Service needed to intervene on a fireworks situation to ensure President Obama’s safety; this is an embarrassment to Honolulu, to Hawaii, to our police force, and to me as a citizen.

There are a number of incredible public fireworks displays that people all over the island can attend. There is no reason that people should be allowed to launch these stupid, selfish, dangerous fireworks in residential neighborhoods that put everyone else at risk and deprive us from the right to peaceful enjoyment of our holidays. Whatever traditions or religious beliefs that people claim to be celebrating do not justify the risk to public safety that results. I highly doubt that any religion or culture condones the use of explosives, particularly illegal ones, by people (including children) with no expertise in how to use them safely. I also suspect that very few of the people who are launching fireworks are doing so because of their cultural and/or religious beliefs.

I used to look forward to New Year’s and July 4th, but now I just worry about the health and safety of our families, our neighbors, our pets, our oceans, and our `aina. We need to give much more support to our hardworking policemen and firemen so they can prevent the proliferation of illegal fireworks and catch people who use legal ones irresponsibly. More importantly, we need to enact legislation that stops the use and sale of fireworks altogether.

Please, please, please, do something about this so that good, respectful, responsible citizens can enjoy themselves on holidays and not have their safety jeopardized by a loud, reckless minority. Please, take a stand against fireworks!!!

Some Scary Fireworks Statics:

Fireworks…

-Cause significant fires and related loss of life. Each year HFD responds from 20-100 fires over New Years Eve. A 2000 house fire in Palolo valley caused a fatality.

-Cause serious burns and injuries. The CPSC estimates that in 2008 about 7,000 people were treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries associated with fireworks. More than half the injuries were burns and most of the injuries involved the hands, eyes, and legs. People ranging in age from 15 to 19 years old had the highest per capita injury rate among all age groups.

-Cause significant health conditions. Studies have found a dramatic increase in emergency room visits due to asthma and other chronic obstructive pulmonary disorders (COPD) during firework activities.

-Cause environmental degradation. The many colors in fireworks are due to burning metals. Specifically, green colors are caused by burning Barium. Barium is a characteristic EPA and DOH hazardous waste and can accumulate in water and soil. Additionally, particulate matter and sulfur dioxide frequently build up in the air in significant concentrations.

-Cause increased risk to air, water and land travel and shipping. Illegal fireworks are improperly brought to Hawaii , increasing the risk to all those that travel and ship goods. The FAA has noted that the majority of illegal fireworks brought on planes are bound for Hawaii .

-Cause significant disturbances to the peace. Aerial fireworks produce noise levels around 150 decibels, disrupting neighborhoods, causing stress to both residents and pets.

Thank you for your time. I hope you will do the right thing and ban the use of amateur explosives in our state.