A family decision

It may seem weird for a person so intent upon protecting the ecology on which our life depends, but I love fireworks.

They stimulate the senses, bring people together, and remind us of magic that we see in movies or read about in books.  Every 4th of July, our family travels to Kansas to visit with family and experience fireworks with family and friends.  Starting with the town's nighttime fireworks display, and continuing through daytime and nighttime fireworks with our family, we eat, drink, and share stories with family, some of whom we have not seen since the previous 4th.

On one level, the fact that fireworks release carbon, metals, and perchlorate a into the atmosphere raises concerns.  However, with all the fireworks allowed in the state, studies that found perchlorate in over twenty other states found none in Kansas.  My wife having to move from Kansas to find work forces us to release much more carbon into the atmosphere by driving or flying her home than we do through the entertainment.  On the other side of the ledger, the town where my in-laws live has 100% of their electricity from wind energy.  The local community college uses geo-exchange and on-site wind to stay "off-grid".  A recent housing development uses a shared geo-exchange system to provide heating and cooling with minimal utility service.  

The benefit of maintaining family connections, and of the community building and sustaining the connections among neighbors counterbalance the limited environmental impact.  Eliminating fuel and explosive dumping from the military, and converting our national fleet to electric vehicles would do much more for the environment than banning fireworks.  If our only environmental damage was from fireworks, we could handle the impact fairly easily.

For our family, we will continue to push for community energy systems, electric vehicles in car share and public transportation systems, organic food grown without harmful chemicals, packaging and household materials that are 100% recyclable, livable and walkable communities, and green manufacturing...among other similar innovative solutions to our consumer economy.  Once a year, we will spend the better part of 24 hours lighting and enjoying fireworks with family, feeding our bonds, reminding us of the value of community, and celebrating both the independence of our country and the strength of our family.