Fireworks cause a number of problems and we need to reconsider whether a short display of pretty lights falling from the sky is worth all the ill-effects of them.

Pets run away frightened, often never to return home, causing shelter workers to chase them in the streets the following days, which causes danger to everyone, shelters become over-loaded, and pets who ran away often die. Last July, my friend's cat ran away from home, spooked by fireworks, and a coyote attacked and killed her. The day before Halloween this year, a dog who was off-leash at Trout Lake park got spooked by fireworks, ran onto the skytrain track and was killed by a train.

This has to stop. Our selfish human desires are affecting more than our animal companions. People in seniors homes, people with PTSD, wild animals, those suffering from respiratory or anxiety issues, and the environment can all be negatively affected by these "celebrations".

Fireworks contain a variety of chemicals, many of which are toxic to humans. From the gunpowder that fuels their flight to the metallic compounds that create their colour. They contain carcinogenic or hormone-disrupting substances that can make its way into soil and water, debris litters to the ground or into the sea, affecting wildlife, and they leave behind smoke that hangs in the sky for quite sometime afterwards, which is inhaled by people and animals. We all know what the city parks and beaches look like after a public forwards event - littered with garbage from attendees. Many tax-payers resent the excessive cost of these brief and pointless displays in their towns, and others are concerned about supporting industries with terrible safety laws for the workers who make them in dangerous working conditions overseas.

We are asking for a ban of fireworks, or at the very least, a consideration for "silent" fireworks (although this does not eliminate the environmental or health damage). Silent fireworks have been required by law in Collechio, Italy since July 2016. http://www.ibtimes.com/no-new-years-eve-fireworks-italy-displays-banned-amid-pollution-concerns-2243942

Here is a company that makes silent fireworks :

https://epicfireworks.com/quiet-fireworks