Found it here : http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/....html?id=16ab2b8a-cade-4770-a81b-16d50c2d994e
Frances Bula, Vancouver Sun
Published: Friday, September 15, 2006
City council backed off from a wholesale ban on fireworks Thursday.
After listening to a lineup of people who said a ban on family fireworks would not solve problems caused by firecrackers that are already illegal, or injuries caused by improper use, Non-Partisan Association councillors agreed with Vision councillors the city needs a different approach.
Instead, council imposed a ban this year on fireworks that produce a loud noise without visuals, although it did not define an acceptable decibel level. Council also agreed that firefighters, fireworks vendors, the SPCA and health workers should work together to come up with a policy to minimize problems without eliminating family fun or neighbourhood activity.
That could include having retailers keep information on people to whom they sell, as North and West Vancouver require, or allowing the sale of only family packs, as other municipalities do, rather than single fireworks.
"Everyone agrees the primary problem is the loud noisemakers," said Vision Coun. Heather Deal, who led the way in opposing a blanket ban. "By banning these, we give the fire department and the police the tools they need."
Fire Chief Ray Holgate had argued that Vancouver needs to join other municipalities in the Lower Mainland in banning family fireworks so there would be a coherent regional approach to reduce injuries and police and fire calls at Halloween.
He argued for a policy that would mean fireworks could only be set off by a certified professional, saying that would permit fireworks, but channel them into neighbourhood group events.
But fireworks manufacturers and vendors pointed out that the public's main objections are often directed at noisy firecrackers and rockets that are already illegal here but which people buy in the U.S.
They said a ban on family fireworks would just drive the whole market underground, leaving profits in the hands of criminals instead of law-abiding small-business owners.
They added that requiring a certified professional for a fireworks display would be an effective ban, since few community groups would be able to afford the $5-million insurance a professional would require.
But the stake in the heart of the proposed ban came from a nurse from BC Children's Hospital.
Although Sharron Lyons gave vivid descriptions of injuries to children caused by fireworks, she said a ban wouldn't work as well as more licensing and education, such as an afternoon course at a community centre.
Requiring everyone to take a federal government certification course, which is for people setting off more powerful display fireworks, is "like asking someone to get a licence to fly a Lear jet when they've only got a prop plane," she said.
Lyons also noted that most fireworks injuries are in Surrey, where people have access to fireworks from first nations reserves in the U.S., and that North and West Vancouver, which still allow them, seem to be doing better.
Lyons said Children's has seen 22 serious injuries to children from fireworks since 1999, including bowels perforated, hands blown off, and chemical burns to faces.
In spite of those somewhat grim statistics, she said injuries have dropped significantly in the past 15 years, because education programs have warned people about the dangers of improperly used fireworks.
Frances Bula, Vancouver Sun
Published: Friday, September 15, 2006
City council backed off from a wholesale ban on fireworks Thursday.
After listening to a lineup of people who said a ban on family fireworks would not solve problems caused by firecrackers that are already illegal, or injuries caused by improper use, Non-Partisan Association councillors agreed with Vision councillors the city needs a different approach.
Instead, council imposed a ban this year on fireworks that produce a loud noise without visuals, although it did not define an acceptable decibel level. Council also agreed that firefighters, fireworks vendors, the SPCA and health workers should work together to come up with a policy to minimize problems without eliminating family fun or neighbourhood activity.
That could include having retailers keep information on people to whom they sell, as North and West Vancouver require, or allowing the sale of only family packs, as other municipalities do, rather than single fireworks.
"Everyone agrees the primary problem is the loud noisemakers," said Vision Coun. Heather Deal, who led the way in opposing a blanket ban. "By banning these, we give the fire department and the police the tools they need."
Fire Chief Ray Holgate had argued that Vancouver needs to join other municipalities in the Lower Mainland in banning family fireworks so there would be a coherent regional approach to reduce injuries and police and fire calls at Halloween.
He argued for a policy that would mean fireworks could only be set off by a certified professional, saying that would permit fireworks, but channel them into neighbourhood group events.
But fireworks manufacturers and vendors pointed out that the public's main objections are often directed at noisy firecrackers and rockets that are already illegal here but which people buy in the U.S.
They said a ban on family fireworks would just drive the whole market underground, leaving profits in the hands of criminals instead of law-abiding small-business owners.
They added that requiring a certified professional for a fireworks display would be an effective ban, since few community groups would be able to afford the $5-million insurance a professional would require.
But the stake in the heart of the proposed ban came from a nurse from BC Children's Hospital.
Although Sharron Lyons gave vivid descriptions of injuries to children caused by fireworks, she said a ban wouldn't work as well as more licensing and education, such as an afternoon course at a community centre.
Requiring everyone to take a federal government certification course, which is for people setting off more powerful display fireworks, is "like asking someone to get a licence to fly a Lear jet when they've only got a prop plane," she said.
Lyons also noted that most fireworks injuries are in Surrey, where people have access to fireworks from first nations reserves in the U.S., and that North and West Vancouver, which still allow them, seem to be doing better.
Lyons said Children's has seen 22 serious injuries to children from fireworks since 1999, including bowels perforated, hands blown off, and chemical burns to faces.
In spite of those somewhat grim statistics, she said injuries have dropped significantly in the past 15 years, because education programs have warned people about the dangers of improperly used fireworks.