Environment
Stop Releasing Your Balloons Into the Sky
Birds and turtles eat them and die.
The Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge is a 47,000-plus-acre habitat for migratory birds on the Jersey Shore. Note the “refuge” in its name—it is not supposed to be littered with crumpled balloons and party ribbon.
Yet work crews recently scooped up more than 100 balloons in various states of inflation from the refuge’s marshes and beaches. “Did you ever wonder where your balloons go when they are released?” writes the park on Facebook. “Birds, turtles, and other animals commonly mistake balloons for food which has a detrimental impact on wildlife.”