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The intentional release of inflated balloons is now illegal across nearly all of the Outer Banks.
After voting against the ordinance in September, the Currituck Board of Commissioners on Monday, Jan. 27 approved an amended version of the ban, which prohibits the intentional mass release of helium balloons outdoors and imposes a $50 fine for infractions.
Watch previous coverage: Kitty Hawk joins other Outer Banks towns with banning balloon releases
During the September vote, Board Vice-Chair Selina Jarvis and Commissioner Kitty Etheridge were the only supporters of the release ban. At the Jan. 27 meeting, only Commissioner Kevin McCord, a vocal opponent of the measure back in September, remained as a “no” vote.
Last year, Southern Shores resident Debbie Swick spearheaded an effort to make the release of balloons illegal on the Outer Banks and across the state, launching “Ban Balloon Release in North Carolina” and a Change.org petition.
She spoke before the vote at Monday’s commissioners meeting, saying she attended the necropsy of a humpback whale that washed up on the beach in Kitty Hawk on Dec. 27.
“When you have the opportunity to stand beside one of these majestic beings, you can’t help but marvel how frail they are,” Swick told the board, noting that a single balloon can take down even huge marine creatures.
Watch related coverage: 2 dead whales found in Virginia Beach had entanglement scars
Last year, Swick successfully lobbied Dare County’s six towns and the county itself to pass similar ordinances. In Duck, Southern Shores, Manteo and Kitty Hawk, the fine for violating the ban is a steep $250.
Inflated balloons are popular for celebrating life events, but they can wreak havoc on the environment. Birds, turtles and other animals commonly mistake balloons for food, which can harm or even kill them, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Marine species like dolphins, whales and turtles, as well as animals such as cows, dogs, sheep and birds have all been hurt or killed by balloons, the agency said.
Balloons can block the digestive tract, leaving animals to slowly starve to death. Animals can also become entangled in the balloon, or its ribbon, rendering them unable to move or eat.
Watch related coverage: Record number of cold-stunned sea turtles have been rescued in the Outer Banks this winter season
Mylar balloons can take a century to break down, releasing microplastics “that are now inundating our oceans and affecting all of us,” Swick said.
Currituck Commissioner Jarvis, an advocate of the balloon ordinance, thanked Swick for her persistence in seeing the ban passed.
“Thank you for your efforts and thank you for your passion,” Jarvis told Swick.
