Spotting mylar balloons floating at sea and altering course to pick them up was something I always did aboard my charter boat as we made trips throughout the Santa Barbara Channel. I used the process as a segue to educate my charter passengers about the importance of marine debris management and the threats to habitat and the critters I love so much.
Fast forward to today. At a meeting of the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council, I heard a brilliant presentation from a bright young professional on the subject of mylar balloons released from land and subsequently settling out on the ocean. The detrimental effects and the numbers were alarming but true.
The presenter was Madeline Choi, resource protection specialist intern for NOAA and the Channel Island National Marine Sanctuary. “I have been working on this project for the past 10 months and have never done more purposeful work,” she said. “It has shown me how something as common as mylar balloons, which I see in my everyday life, so negatively affect the environment I live in and am surrounded by.
“Not only does this feel like a large-scale issue, it feels like a small town issue as well. This project has allowed me to brainstorm, research, and develop ways to improve my community and the surrounding Santa Barbara Channel.”
One of her stories was from this past month when she attended her school graduation ceremony in Goleta. It was a wonderful event right up until the finale, when scores of mylar balloons were released.
Heartbroken, she stood staring skyward as all those balloons rose up and slowly drifted seaward. Then the very next day she was working at sea off the south shores of the Channel Islands where she saw multiple balloons from the graduation ceremony. Now they had become marine debris eyesores and death traps for critters.
From her presentation I learned that balloons are one of the top three types of waste in the Santa Barbara Channel. They are nearly impossible to recycle, they are not biodegradable, they are frequently mistaken for food, and attached strings and ribbons can entangle marine life.
The Island Packers boat alone picked up 423 mylar balloons and 80 latex balloons in the past 11 months, and that is just a tiny fraction of what is out there.
Around the calendar, Maddie reported that Valentine’s Day is our greatest threat. Other big ones are graduations and Mother’s Day. Birthday balloons are also sadly abundant throughout the year. One of the motivational messages in Maddie’s presentation was: “Set your graduate free, not your balloons.”
I’m not a fan of mylar balloons, and I implore people not to release them. If you feel you must buy floating balloons, then please securely attach weights to them in hopes they don’t get loose to clutter the marine environment and kill critters we are trying to manage for sustainability.
— Capt. David Bacon operates WaveWalker Charters and is president of SOFTIN Inc., a nonprofit organization providing seafaring opportunities for those in need. Visit softininc.blogspot.com to learn more about the organization and how you can help. Click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.
