Balloons, and Why We Are Phasing Them Out
As a family, Trevor and Margie have always embraced a stewardship of Mother Nature. Over the last couple of years, our family shop, Fantasy Florist, joined in this stewardship by implementing sustainable practices in the shop wherever we can. Composting all of our organic material, switching from single-use plastic message card holders to dried rose stem message card holders, shopping local whenever we are able to, and purchasing from B-Corporations as much as possible, are just some of steps we’ve taken to implement our “Why.”
“Why” we are a florist is to challenge our imagination, spread interconnectedness in the community, and to do our part in preserving our planet.
The next step we are taking towards sustainability and preserving our planet is phasing out balloons. When we read about the negative consequences of latex balloons, mylar balloons, and helium, we decided not to purchase any new balloons. We will sell the inventory that we have, but you’ll see popular balloons disappearing as options on our website. The first selection we have run out of is our generic Happy Birthday balloons. We do still have a few milestone birthday balloons such as Sweet 16, 40th, and 50th, and “Over the Hill.” Just call us to find out what we still have in stock!
If you’re interested in what we’ve learned about balloons and helium, here are some of the statistics that went into our decision:
- Balloons can travel hundreds of miles before they land–which can be in the ocean, lakes, forests, or prairies. Wildlife gets entangled in the strings or ingests the balloons and strings causing injury and death. (https://wildlifecenter.org/help-advice/wildlife-issues/balloon-releases)
- Mylar balloons (the shiny foil balloons) never break down; they just become smaller and smaller pieces of microplastics. Latex balloons eventually break down, but it takes months, and they often affect wildlife before they have a chance of biodegrading. (https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/balloons-environmental-impact/)
- Balloons cause power outages affecting thousands each year, including in our own Arlington, VA. (https://www.arlnow.com/2022/04/20/balloons-caused-large-power-outage-in-arlington-yesterday/)
- “Helium is a nonrenewable resource with many crucial industrial, medical and scientific uses, such as in MRIs, superconductors and weather balloons. The U.S. is fortunate to be rich in helium; we produce 40% of the gas worldwide. But there is a global helium shortage, and projections of future helium demand indicate that we will face serious limitations in the helium supply within only a few decades.” (https://www.caryinstitute.org/news-insights/feature/helium-balloons-impose-toll-our-air-land-and-sea)
- As of 2021, it is illegal to release balloons in the Commonwealth of Virginia. “It is unlawful for any individual 16 years of age or older or other person to intentionally release, discard, or cause to be released or discarded outdoors any balloon made of a nonbiodegradable or nonphotodegradable material or any material that requires more than five minutes’ contact with air or water to degrade. Any person convicted of a violation of this section is liable for a civil penalty of $25 per balloon released or discarded…” (https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title29.1/chapter5/section29.1-556.1/)
Despite phasing out balloons as part of our commitment towards sustainable practices, we have partnered with several like-minded local family-owned businesses for alternative add-on offerings. Check out our River-Sea Chocolate selections, our Grace+Love Candle selections, and our Tea for All Reasons selections!