This petition asks the Ridgefield City Council to adopt an ordinance prohibiting the sale and use of consumer fireworks within city limits while encouraging safer, community-centered celebrations that bring people together.

This is not about taking away celebration.
It is about creating celebrations that are safer, kinder, and more inclusive for everyone who calls Ridgefield home, including our pets and the wildlife that make our community so special.

If you believe Ridgefield can lead with compassion while still celebrating our nation's holidays, please sign this petition and share it with your friends, family, and neighbors. Together, we can build traditions that future generations will be proud of.

As Ridgefield continues to grow, we have a chance to decide what kind of community we want to be, one that celebrates our nation's independence while also protecting our neighbors, our animals, and our environment.

We are asking the Ridgefield City Council to pass an ordinance prohibiting the sale and use of consumer fireworks within city limits.

This petition is not about canceling the Fourth of July. It's about reimagining it, creating a celebration that's just as festive, but safer and kinder for everyone who calls Ridgefield home, including our pets and wildlife.
If you believe Ridgefield can celebrate with compassion, please sign and share this petition with your friends, family, and neighbors.

Together, we can build a tradition future generations will be proud of.

Every year, the Fourth of July brings many celebrations that light up the local skies with fireworks. These moments of celebration also bring fear, stress, and unnecessary risk.
With those celebrations also comes overwhelm for veterans with PTSD. Also, many pets, including dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, and horses, can become overstimulated by noise. Some even become paralyzed with fear and panic. So much so that some may break through windows and fencing. There are so many cases of pets escaping in fear from their people; this can even happen to pets that had no problems with fireworks in the past. More pets go missing on the Fourth of July than on any other holiday.

There are also wildlife concerns, including the loud booms from fireworks that send birds fleeing in panic. It is not just birds that are affected; deer, rabbits, and squirrels are, too, to name a few.
Much debris is also left behind from fireworks, not to mention the pollution fireworks cause. Often, fireworks debris lands on a neighbor's deck, roof, fence, or house, or in their backyard.  There are also many more reports of Vegetation fires and the risk of other fires.  Also, there is the risk of serious injury from lighting off fireworks.

And every year, local fire departments, police, and animal control face a spike in emergency calls at what should be a time for celebration and joy. Firefighters, law enforcement, and animal services face increased demands during an already busy time of year.

Some may say just go and escape the noise, but that is not the answer. As there are so many other forms of distress fireworks cause. And in this day and age, there are many other options to celebrate the Fourth of July. I invite the city to explore those options while banning the sale of fireworks within Ridgefield.