I remember, as a child, hanging on to one specific party balloon for what seemed like years. I don\u2019t remember how or where I acquired it, but it had initially floated high, bobbing against the ceiling, and, over time, lost its buoyancy, coming to rest on the carpet. Yet, when a family friend asked if they should pop the now sad-looking balloon, I assumed they were joking \u2013 like when an adult asks, teasingly, if they should eat your last slice of birthday cake \u2013 and was distraught when they followed through. I didn\u2019t care that it had become grubby and partly deflated \u2013 I\u2019d had that balloon for what felt like for ever.<\/p>\n
This, it turns out, is the problem with many balloons. Not that clingy young children might become over-attached to them, but that they are often a single-use plastic \u2013 and even biodegradable alternatives such as latex balloons do not decompose quickly<\/a>, meaning they can pose a significant risk to wildlife and the environment. In 2019, scientists found that balloons eaten by seabirds<\/a> are more likely to kill them than other kinds of plastic \u2013 yet they do not seem to have been earmarked in the same way as, for example, plastic straws. If anything, balloon-based decor has become more popular in recent years<\/a>, with balloon arches or tunnels deployed not just at birthdays but at events ranging from baby showers to shop openings. Balloon drops are used at New Year\u2019s Eve celebrations and graduation parties, and balloon releases have also endured \u2013 particularly at funerals, where the unleashing of helium-filled balloons signifies the letting-go of a loved one.<\/p>\n A balloon arch \u2013 the go-to party piece. Photograph: Kosamtu\/Getty Images<\/p>\n But there has been some pushback against the balloon boom \u2013 even from those within the industry. In February balloon seller Naomi Spittles, who runs Balloons by Naomi in Lincoln, cited environmental concerns when she refused to fulfil an order for 200 balloons \u2013 for which she could have charged about \u00a3600 \u2013 that were to be released at a memorial. \u201cWhat goes up must come down, and they don\u2019t go to heaven,\u201d she told the BBC<\/a>, while calling for balloon releases to be banned in the UK.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of people ask: \u2018How do you know if your balloons are being used for a balloon release?\u2019\u201d Spittles says. \u201cBut if someone is ordering for a birthday, they\u2019re going to order number-shaped balloons or a pretty display \u2013 they\u2019re not just going to order 50 helium balloons. I get that people are not in the correct headspace when they\u2019re grieving, but when I explain to them the reasons that I don\u2019t do balloon releases, they\u2019re usually like: \u2018Oh my God, I didn\u2019t even realise.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n To raise awareness of the balloon release problem, Spittles posted about her decision on Instagram: \u201cI had a lot of farmers message me to say thank you,\u201d she says \u2013 as livestock can ingest or inhale balloons. \u201cI had a woman message me to say her yorkshire terrier choked to death on a balloon in the garden. You have no control over where the balloons land.\u201d Helium balloons are thought to be able to reach a height of 10 km<\/a> and can travel significant distances: in 2012, one launched in Derby, England, was found in Sydney, Australia, having travelled 10,000 miles<\/a>.<\/p>\n When it comes to marking the loss of a loved one, Spittles sometimes suggests, \u201cgetting a couple of bubble machines instead, or spending the money on a memorial bench, or planting a tree \u2013 something that will make a difference\u201d.<\/p>\n A balloon and other debris removed from a sea turtle in Australia. Photograph: Reuters<\/p>\n While not everyone in the balloon industry might be keen to switch to bubbles, the National Association of Balloon Artists and Suppliers advises members to \u201csay no to balloon releases\u201d in the interest of safeguarding the environment. \u201cTo help address the issue of balloon waste, we have partnered with TerraCycle to offer our members heavily subsidised recycling boxes specifically for balloon and party waste,\u201d says a spokesperson. \u201cThis waste is turned into materials from which projects such as playground equipment are created.\u201d<\/p>\n There is no nationwide ban on balloon releases in the UK (although plastic balloon sticks have been banned<\/a>), but they have been outlawed by almost 100 local authorities<\/a>, and, in order to release more than 5,000 balloons, you would require permission from the Civil Aviation Authority. In the US and Australia, several states have banned or restricted the releasing of balloons<\/a>, while in countries such as Denmark and Finland, balloon releases are prohibited under littering laws.<\/p>\n A deflated helium balloon caught in a tree. Photograph: outlook\/Alamy<\/p>\n Like party poppers and champagne, balloons have long been associated with a sense of ceremony \u2013 but this wasn\u2019t always the case. The first rubber balloons were made by scientist Michael Faraday in 1824, who invented them for laboratory use \u2013 he used them to contain the gases with which he was working, although he also noted that his hydrogen-filled balloons had \u201cconsiderable ascending power\u201d<\/a>. A year later, balloons were on sale to the general public \u2013 albeit as a kind of DIY kit comprising two circles of soft rubber, the edges of which were rubbed together until they stuck, so the inner section could be inflated.<\/p>\n By 1873, however, the New York Times was predicting that beyond their meteorological and military uses, balloons \u201cwill always be an interesting addition to the amusements of popular gatherings\u201d. A deep dive by Slate<\/a> into how balloons became a go-to party accessory surmised it was largely because \u201cthey\u2019re cheap and colourful, and people like watching things fly away\u201d.<\/p>\n Balloons have also played a significant role in popular culture, from Nena\u2019s 99 Luftballons \u2013 a song reportedly inspired<\/a> by balloon releases at a Rolling Stones concert \u2013 to being wielded by Stephen King\u2019s creepy Pennywise clown and powering a house into the sky in Pixar\u2019s film Up<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe popularity of balloons has definitely grown \u2013 just because celebrities have them,\u201d says Spittles. In 2021, Khloe Kardashian celebrated her daughter True\u2019s third birthday by filling a bedroom chock-full of pink balloons<\/a> \u2013 the same year that footballer Harry Kane wished his partner a happy Valentine\u2019s Day posing next to a balloon arch<\/a>. In August last year, Selena Gomez shared pictures from her bachelorette party in Cabo<\/a>, surrounded by balloons \u2013 and almost every reality TV star seems to have shared photos of impressive pneumatic displays in recent years. No wonder the general public are following suit. \u201cPeople have them for gender reveals now, engagement parties \u2013 that never used to be a thing,\u201d says Spittles. \u201cBut people see celebrities on TikTok and Instagram having big events and they want to be like that.\u201d<\/p>\n Here\u2019s to your future, indeed \u2026 a discarded foil balloon on a Michigan lake. Photograph: liveslow\/Getty Images<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t until the late 1970s that foil (or Mylar) balloons<\/a> were invented, made from a thin sheet of nylon coated with a metallic layer of polyethylene. These are the lightweight, shiny balloons that are most commonly used to create shapes, such as numbers and love hearts. They have also come under significant criticism, since not only are they not biodegradable, but they can also conduct electricity and interfere with power lines if released.<\/p>\n Spittles is not alone in wanting to see a complete ban on balloon releases. Sisters Danielle and Chelsea Vosburgh set up the non-profit Balloons Blow<\/a> 15 years ago, after noticing a significant rise in balloon litter during family beach cleans in Florida. Their Instagram now has more than 16,000 followers, and their website provides a portal through which members of the public can report planned releases in the US, as well as a resource for those looking to learn more about the environmental impact of balloons. \u201cPLEASE try to stop the balloon release yourself before contacting us,\u201d reads a note above the online contact form. \u201cWe receive so many reports, we cannot keep up with them all.\u201d<\/p>\n The Vosburghs liken balloon releases to \u201ctossing death traps into the environment\u201d. \u201cLatex balloons are falsely marketed as biodegradable. Made with added chemicals and dyes, they last years,\u201d says Danielle. \u201cTheir burst remnants mimic food sources to animals on land and in the sea. The balloons cause blockages in the digestive tract, causing a slow death by starvation.\u201d<\/p>\n They also point out that helium, which is used in any balloon that is intended to float, is a finite resource \u2013 and one that is required for the operation of MRI scanners, among other uses. They cite Cambridge University chemist Peter Wothers, who called for an end to helium-filled party balloons<\/a> in 2012, saying: \u201cI can imagine that in 50 years\u2019 time our children will be saying: \u2018I can\u2019t believe they used such a precious material to fill balloons.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n A guillemot caught in balloons in Northumberland. Photograph: David Steely\/Balloonsblow.org<\/p>\n In 2020, researchers found<\/a> that balloons advertised as \u201c100% biodegradable\u201d did not meaningfully degrade after 16 weeks in industrial compost \u2013 remaining recognisable in shape, colour, and consistency \u2013 and so continued to pose a threat to wildlife. \u201cBecause the balloons did not break down, marketing latex balloons as \u2018biodegradable\u2019 amounts to greenwashing,\u201d says Morgan Gilmour, who co-authored the study<\/a>. \u201cReleased balloons can travel hundreds of miles on air currents to remote regions of land as well as the ocean, where they can\u2019t be cleaned up, and where they become trash and marine debris.\u201d<\/p>\n The study says: \u201cWhat most consumers don\u2019t realise is that to shape milky natural rubber latex sap into the product we know as a balloon, many additional chemicals need to be added. These chemicals include antioxidants and anti-fogging (to counteract that cloudy look balloons can get), plasticisers (to make it more flexible), preservatives (to enable the balloon to sit in warehouses and on store shelves for months), flame retardants, fragrance and, of course, dyes and pigments \u2026 so the balloons can\u2019t be \u2018100% natural rubber latex\u2019.\u201d Gilmour does not buy balloons herself, believing bubbles to be \u201cmuch more fun\u201d.<\/p>\n And, of course, bubbles don\u2019t pollute beaches. \u201cOur State of Our Beaches 2025 data found that nearly 40% of surveyed UK beaches had discarded balloons,\u201d says Lizzie Price, beachwatch manager at the Marine Conservation Society (MSC). So the MSC suggests a range of balloon alternatives, including colourful streamers, flags and banners, which also have the advantage of being reusable. When it comes to bubbles, the MSC recommends shining torches on the bubbles as they float away: \u201cThe effect is spectacular.\u201d<\/p>\n The Balloons Blow website also warns people away from other forms of commemorative release \u2013 namely sky lanterns, butterflies and doves \u2013 which, though they don\u2019t affect the environment in the same way, do cause other problems. Instead, its suggestions<\/a> include ribbon dances, drumming, paper pompoms and distributing wildflower \u201cseed bombs\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no need for any type of balloon to contribute to the already overflowing landfills,\u201d says Danielle Vosburgh. Perhaps it\u2019s time to let go of balloons once and for all \u2013 just not literally.<\/p>\n Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters<\/a> section, please click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n