Don't Let Go - The Deadly Truth of Sky Lanterns

One of the planets biggest problems is plastic. In a study conducted by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, it disturbingly found that the equivalent to an entire truck of plastic that can hold 8 tonnes of it is dumped into the sea every minute. It is estimated by 2050 that there will be more plastic by weight than fish in the sea. Can you believe that?

Source: Thousands of Lanterns are released for a festival

In the UK alone over 200,000 sky lanterns also known as Chinese Lanterns are sold to anyone who hands over money each year. However, still to this day most people still do not have any idea of the harmful and the deadly consequences that come with releasing a sky lantern, and how animals will be affected within their environments.

Chinese lanterns are made of paper-covered wire or even bamboo frames and have an exposed flame heat source, this is what lifts the lantern into the air where it can then float for miles upon miles from the initial point of release. Once it extinguishes the lantern will then fall back down to earth.

You might find the photographs within this post quite distressing, but it is important this should be highlighted

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History

Historically, Monks used lanterns on the twelfth day of the first Lunar Month of their worships of the Buddha.

The Emperor Liu Zhuang who was a Buddhist himself ordered all the people of the Imperial Palace and its Citizens during the Eastern Han Dynasty to light up Lanterns to worship the Buddha exactly as the monks did. This custom then gradually became a Grand Festival amongst common people, for example during the Tang Dynasty the people would make Lanterns to celebrate their peaceful life whilst the illuminations symbolised their prosperous, strong and powerful country.

I wonder if they realised the devastation Lanterns would later bring to wildlife?

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What happens to the Wildlife?

As you can imagine, a wired paper bag on fire is not going to have the best outcome. You might find this part quite distressing.

• Ingestion: Animals do not understand the difference between edible and inedible items, they can eat lantern parts through either curiosity or even because it is hiding within vegetation on the areas they are grazing upon. If a Lantern falls into a field the frames can then be chopped into silage and hay during the harvest season, this causes needle like splinters that then enters the animals feed. This causes punctures and tears within the animal’s throat, stomach, and other internal organs that leads the to internal bleeding and results in a slow and painful death for the animal.

• Entanglement: Animals can become trapped and entangled in a lantern frame and the other various parts that have fallen into their habitat. Once the animal has become trapped they can panic and stress, sustaining injuries to themselves and inevitably death should they not be saved.
• Splinters: The debris from lanterns can splinter and become embedded into the animals skin that causes lacerations and deep puncture wounds, that if not seen straight away can become infected causing the animal to become unwell and may also result in death.
• Fire: Lanterns have an open flame that lifts them into the air. What goes up must come down which can cause fire to buildings, animal housing and may also destroy wild habitats with forest fires for example. In 2013, a lantern set fire to a plastic recycling plant setting fire to 100,000 tonnes of plastic in the West Midlands UK.

Source: Fire at a plastic recycling plant in 2013

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A Handful of reported incidents in 2017

• A Pony sustained horrific burns to his rump due to a lantern landing on its back
• A Foal was put to sleep after he bolted through a wired fence ripping his legs open from becoming frightened by a lantern. He could not be saved due to the extent of his injuries.
• A nine-month old goat was found dead after the frame of a Lantern was discovered around her neck that had punctured her throat.
• A cow in Chester UK died from ingesting a lantern that then punctured her oesophagus that resulted in her suffering for up to 48 hours, eventually she suffocated on her own feed.
• A Barn Owl died after becoming entangled within the frame of a lantern. This Owl is now the face of the Don't Let Go Campaign

Horrific right? these cases are only a small handful that the RSPCA released this year within the campaign to having this banned worldwide. In the UK, many councils are now on board banning the use of Lanterns on their land in hope other councils will follow suit.

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What is happening to stop this from continuing?

If you were to cut up a deflated balloon or tear up a sky lantern, and then drop those bits on the floor in the UK you would be fined for littering, however you can release hundreds of thousands of balloons and sky lanterns which does not count as a crime. What goes up must come down, and they do in their thousands. How is this different to standard littering?

Here in the UK, the Farmers Union has called for a complete ban on the use of Lanterns because of the dangers they post to their livestock. This ban is highly supported by horse keepers, animal sanctuaries and zoos that all have now spoken out after disturbingly finding lantern debris on their land. The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) have announced their concerns about the impact Lanterns have on marine animals. Today, Fire and Rescue services around the UK issue warnings against the Lanterns due to the fire hazard that they pose and now Lantern releases are completely banned in countries such as Australia, Germany & Malta.

Do you know the rules in your country?

Source: Farmers Unions in the UK are calling for a complete ban on the use of Lanterns due to the affects they pose to their livestock

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What you can do to help

Some retailers are now selling so called “Biodegradable Lanterns” as a safe alternative rather than the wired frames however, bamboo which is the substance they use to create the frame can actually take decades to degrade and the lanterns still pose the same risks as wired alternatives. Most animals will ingest Bamboo even though it has no nutritional content.

• If you find a Lantern, pick up the debris and bin it. You never know what animal you might of saved by doing so
• Discourage your friends and family from using Chinese Lanterns or attending such festivals
• Contact the event planners and retailers that encourage the use of Lanterns and ask them to seek harmless alternatives
• Contact your local council or government about planned releases and try to discourage the organises from holding such events

• Write to your local MP (within England) or AM (Without Wales)
• Sign all petitions and join in campaigns that call for the ban of Lanterns
• Join a Beach Cleanup and help save Marine Wildlife by picking up the tons of plastics currently destroying our oceans
• The most important thing you can do, is spread the word!

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Are there any alternatives?

A lot of people use balloon and lantern releases to reach a loved one that has passed and although this is a nice idea, they are actually causing a heck of amount of destruction where they could alternatively pick something that would not cause such damage to wildlife. Examples include:

• Use static candles, nightlights, lanterns or outdoor lights that create a nicer atmosphere without releasing them into the sky.
• Write a word or a name onto a candle and then let it burn down to make a symbolic wish or memorial for whoever it is you are doing it for.
• Plant a tree or even donate to a good cause to honour the memory of a loved one.
• Pick up litter and RECYCLE.

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Final Thoughts

This subject is massively close to my heart. I find it incredibly ignorant in the day and age of the internet and the resources available to us that we are still unaware of how destructive we are to this planet and its incredible wildlife. How can Sky Lanterns and Balloons still be released into the air without a fine, or even without any care to what animals it will kill. It is pleasing to hear that some countries are already on board in the banning the use of these items and I hope that 2018 will be the year that the UK follows suit. New Year celebrations are rife for releasing sky lanterns and balloons that I feel this is the most fitting for my last 2017 post.

If this post stops just one person from releasing a Lantern it will make the start of my 2018 absolutely incredible.
Join me and the amazing Campaign of #dontletgo supporting the ban on balloon and sky lanterns.

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Content Sources

Marine Conservation Society, RSPCA, RSPCA, Travel China Guide, Don’t Let Go Campaign

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