Editor:
I recently attended two community events in Williams Lake: the Daybreak Rotary Stampede Parade and the first Performance in the Park concert.
I thoroughly enjoyed both, as I always have. They are a testament to the vibrant community spirit that is Williams Lake.
Events such as these also demonstrate how those who organize, participate in and sponsor are tirelessly working to make our community and region a great place to live. Thank you.
However, if we are to ensure that this city and region are desirable and sustainable places to live we need to consider what we are needlessly leaving behind as we do so.
At the parade and the first performance I was disappointed and angered to witness balloons being given to the youngest members of the audience.
With all that we are now faced with in respect to stewardship of this planet for future generations, the very recipients of the balloons, the distribution of them seemed unnecessary and extremely irresponsible.
At the concert I counted 41 that were released, floating into the air to land in the forests, rivers and lakes that are the Cariboo Chilcotin.
That’s at least, because I assuredly missed some going airborne. Forty-one pieces of absolutely preventable trash polluting this tremendous region.
There is a terabyte of evidence that illustrates the harm latex balloons and their plastic strings do to the animals we share this planet with.
Furthermore, both the strings and the balloons will be present somewhere a very long time after a brief amount of use.
Balloons bring momentary joy to children. If we want them to experience lasting joy we should leave them with a town, region and planet that is as livable as we can make it.
Tim Horsley
Williams Lake
