Balloon trash stuck in a tree
Don’t think I’ve forgotten about balloons! The mylar balloon in the photo has been stuck in this poor tree for more than a week. Of course I want to pull it down and throw it in the trash like a good citizen, if only I could reach it. I’ve been monitoring the balloon because I thought it would fall down once the helium failed, but alas this balloon really nestled into the foliage and isn’t going anywhere.
On one hand this is a good thing because the tree trapped the balloon and saved the ocean from one more nasty piece of litter. On the other hand the tree now has a new trash tenant and can’t do much about it.
It’s interesting to note that the little plastic weight tied to the end of the ribbon didn’t do its job. I thought the whole point of weights was to prevent balloons from flying away. So now there are two useless pieces of plastic polluting the environment.
Today’s score: tree 1 vs. balloon 0
I imagine a campaign to ban balloons in California will meet with even stiffer resistance than that to ban plastic bags. I guess the better solution is more public awareness of the fact that most unattended balloons eventually end up in the ocean and cause serious injury and death to marine life.
Keep up the good fight, Carolyn!