Is it possible to have an eco-friendly firework display?

Many of us will send off the old year and start 2025 with a bang. New year celebrations will vary in size from small back-garden firework displays to large-scale professional shows. Last year, London’s main event released 12,000 fireworks – just one of many annual events held worldwide to entertain and celebrate.

The British Fireworks Association estimates that in the UK alone, roughly 10 million people buy and use fireworks each year. But perhaps it’s time to use more eco-friendly alternatives?

Fireworks are made from a mixture of chemical oxidants, fuel and additives such as binders or colours, smoke and glitter that are released into the environment during use. Fireworks also release gases, heavy metals and fine particulate matter (known as PM2.5) into the air.

Studies have shown that fireworks can increase air pollutants by 42%, damage the ozone layer, and increase PM2.5 by up to ten times. Some heavy metals and pollutants are known carcinogens that pose a risk to human respiratory systems.

Various chemicals inside fireworks are released upon explosion. For example, perchlorate – an oxidising agent used in rocket fuel and fertilisers – is known to affect thyroid function. When these chemicals enter the waterways or soil, wildlife and ecosystem health are affected and soil fertility decreases.

Coupled with the harmful chemicals released, firework fallout includes packaging such as cardboard, charred fuses and plastic waste. My study found a 1,000% increase in microplastics in the river Thames during high tide, six hours after the new year fireworks in Westminster, London that celebrated the end of 2020.

The loud explosions caused by fireworks can disturb wildlife and cause stress and disorientation to humans and animals, including some pets. Studies find that many animals, including horses, react negatively by running away, while birds have shown disturbed flight and disrupted breeding patterns. This year, a baby red panda died at Edinburgh Zoo due to bonfire night fireworks.

Fireworks can also cause wildfires, which not only contribute to air pollution but can devastate entire ecosystems. In 2022, fireworks caused an estimated 31,302 fires in the US. A 500-acre fire in California believed to have been caused by fireworks cost an estimated US$10 million (£7.9 million) in damage.

How eco are the alternatives?

With advancing technology, more eco-friendly or silent fireworks, drones and laser light shows are available on the market. But it might not make sense to switch from traditional fireworks until the knock-on effects of alternatives are fully understood.

Eco-friendly fireworks contain fewer chemicals and produce less smoke because they use a “clean-burning” [nitrogen base], nitrocellulose, instead of charcoal or sulphur that traditional fireworks use. These fireworks use lower amounts of heavy metals and avoid harmful ingredients such as barium and stronium, which are normally used to produce a range of colours.

Eco-friendly fireworks tend to use biodegradable materials such as cardboard and paper instead of plastic. However, they will still emit pollution such as PM2.5, chemicals and waste which leave a trace on the environment.

Drones and unmanned aerial vehicles are now widely used during public displays and festivals, with over 2 million drones sold each year worldwide. These are not disposable, they can be reused again and again, plus they are quiet unlike traditional or eco-friendly fireworks.

However, they can only be flown in suitable weather conditions. Drones also fly at a lower altitude (up to 120m, whereas consumer fireworks reach the same altitude that professional fireworks can reach – up to 300m. So, drones can potentially affect birds and flying insects more than traditional fireworks.

And while the overall effect of drones and laser light shows on the environment and wildlife will potentially be lower both during and after these events, Australian researchers found the manufacture of drone and laser parts contributes to global warming and pollutes waterways and soil with the heavy metals used in their production.

While individual firework events may leave a relatively minimal toxic legacy on the local environment, they are happening daily on a global scale, with long-lasting effects on the planet and wildlife. This is not sustainable.

Attending a larger professional firework display this new year, instead of setting off fireworks in your back garden, will support a necessary transition from many different-sized events causing lots of small pockets of pollution, to one main event – all without the stress of buying, storing and lighting the fireworks.

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Ria Devereux does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.