By Judi Curry
I purchased my home in the Sunset Cliffs area in 1967, just as Sea World was getting started. At that time there were no fireworks every night.
Over the many years I have resided here, the fireworks have become nightly, scaring the dogs that live here; having a Viet-Nam discharged military man leave my house in a hurry because the sound of the fireworks brought back all of the experiences he had while fighting in the war; and watching other animals panic at the sound of the explosives.
The pollution caused by the ash from the fireworks has been falling into the bay and surrounding areas for decades, sending viable pollution to close neighborhoods for all those years. And the most nauseating aspect, at least for me, is that Sea World was opened up as a marine zoological park. The purpose was to help those sea animals in distress.
There was, and is, absolutely no purpose in having fireworks at their shows. (And since the fireworks are at the end of the night – there is absolutely no reason to have fireworks at all – EVER!)
I have worked with a variety of groups for many years to have Sea World stop their firework shows. Unfortunately there are neighbors – and people that live many miles away – that think these shows are wonderful, and fight those of us with PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder); those of us that have animals that suffer every night from the fireworks; residents in the area that get the residue from the fireworks on a regular basis, etc. and so nothing is done about it. Until potentially now.
There is a new group that is very concerned about the damage being caused by Sea World’s firework show. The name of the head of the group is Amit Dhuleshia, a young man that was born in India but has lived in the United States since he was 8 years old. He is aware of the damage being caused by the shows and is spending full-time hours on speaking to people to cease this part of the Sea World program. His group, Strategic Actions for Animals – sxfa.org– is actively working to save our environment. Below are his comments on the campaign to cease the fireworks:
By Amit Dhuleshia
So there have been a ton of editorials on why people dislike the up to 150 firework shows that SeaWorld holds every year.
In case you have been hiding under a rock, the main reasons are that it frightens and scares our dogs and cats and also wild animals, are really harmful to our environment due to the toxic elements, and causes distress for our military veterans suffering from PTSD.
There have been multiple petitions with thousands of signatures to city officials and SeaWorld. People also have sent emails and met with city council members, but nothing has changed. As we sit here today in February, SeaWorld will still be firing off fireworks in 2024!
So, what’s going to be different this time with another effort to ban or replace fireworks with more environmentally friendly, animal, and veteran friendly shows? There are a couple.
First, SeaWorld, a for profit public corporation, that made $243.2 million in profit in 2023 (yes profit), is getting sued by the city of San Diego for failing to pay $12.2 million in back rent! Given prior negative publicity with their treatment of Orcas, you would think they would stay in the good graces of the residents of the city by at least paying their rent.
Second, cities in San Diego (Ocean Beach, La Jolla), Utah, Colorado are replacing fireworks with drone light shows. SeaWorld can easily spend the resources to find an alternative show to fireworks that are environmentally, animal, and veteran friendly!
Third, there is a lot of pressure from the public and the government to reduce any type of emissions that would affect the environment.
The strategy for getting this done is pretty simple and any resident can help. Since the city and SeaWorld have legally put the fireworks shows in the SeaWorld Master plan, only a resolution drafted and passed by the city council could make this possible. So, we need one city council member to support and start the process.
We will be doing the following:
- Going to the city council environment committee meetings every month and making non-agenda public comments on this issue. We chose the environmental committee because it is an environmental issue and also council member Jennifer Campbell (District 2 where SeaWorld resides) is on the committee and once was the chair of the committee.
- We went in January and we will be going on February 15th 11:45-12:30pm. Please join here if you are interested in coming.
- Asking any supporters to sign this email campaign letter to put public pressure on the council members. This makes it easy for supporters to draft up a prewritten letter and send it directly to the 3 council members on the environment committee.
- I will be meeting with the council member’s staff one on one to see if we can get one of them to support us. I already met with Jennifer Campbell’s staff. As expected, this is not a priority for them right now. Also, councilmember Marni Von Wilpert staff did not even have time to meet with me on this issue.
- Build a coalition of animal rights groups, environmental groups and veteran groups to add more credibility to our ask!
Keep spreading the message!
So please sign the email campaign letter, consider coming to city council, join our coalition (email adhulesh@gmail.com) if you are part of an organization that would help or just spread the message to anyone who you know would support!”
Judi again – I know that I do not have to remind those of you reading this article that you are being affected by the fireworks even if you think they are the greatest thing since chocolate cake. Your health may be suffering; your animals may be suffering – even though some animals ignore the noise and go on their way as if it is quiet outside; the men and women that fought for our freedom may be suffering in spite of them being out of the combat situation for years.
But our planet is getting older; the area around Sea World is showing severe wear; the fireworks show on Sea World grounds has nothing to do with this for-profit organization. Maybe it’s time for all of us to take a stance. We may not have much time remaining to do so!
I love fireworks I’m a pass holder and they are great to watch. Why take them away. Thousands of people go to SeaWorld for entertainment and one thing they do is watch the fireworks. Now Disneyland has houses right next to its property particularly across the street from the Disneyland hotel on walnut street one side is Disney other side is houses. They do fireworks on weekends to help with noise for neighbors which they don’t care about it. So why care about getting rid of SeaWorld. No fireworks= SeaWorld no visitors= SeaWorld no pay rent to city= what’s currently going on with the rent legal action. It’s just for summer Memorial Day and some weekends.
I do get some people do love to see the fireworks shows, but they do cause PTSD for some veterans, a lot of distress for dogs, cats and animals and are really bad for the environment. Also, up to 150 firework shows a year seems a little too much and they can easily find alternative shows that would be more animal, veteran and environmental friendly.
SeaWorld make a lot of money as a company. Over $200-$300 million a year. The city is suing them for rent they haven’t paid during the pandemic – $12.2 million.
There’s no way you really believe taking away the fireworks shows will result in no business.
Confused by the description of how loud they are if you truly live in the sunset cliffs area. Not very loud over there at all. More of an OB/flight path issue.
I live in all the way in El Cajon and have been startled many times by the rumbling before realizing it’s 9:50 and that it’s the sea world fireworks.
El Cajon is 20 miles from Sea World. Difficult to believe it would be “startling” at that distance. I live in PB and it’s rarely “startling,” and I never hear neighbors’ dogs barking, & I live in an apartment 1-1/2 blocks from Mission Bay.
I live in Lemon Grove and we can hear them.
Sound waves from fireworks begin to dissipate between 3-5 miles, Lemon Grove is 16+ miles. You may be hearing something but it’s not SeaWorld fireworks. Use a different issue to prove a point bc fireworks, at that distance isn’t one. Like I said, I live right right off the bay & while I can hear them inside my home it’s not annoying, only a reminder to go outside & watch them.
Sorry Susie Q, you’re wrong. So, you enjoy them — the fireworks — despite what they do to the environment, the birds and local pets, eh?
It would be interesting to hear from the “fireworks spokesperson” at SeaWorld why they do not move to a silent light show with music for those that are on the premise. That way “everyone” could enjoy “seeing the sky above SeaWorld light up with festive colors.
To play Devil’s Advocate, I’ve lived on Crown Point for many years, hearing the fireworks quite well. I have had many dogs and some cats, and NONE of them were agitated with the fireworks after perhaps a day or two hearing them. By my experience pets quickly get used to this and I think this argument for stopping them is weak. Also I think the pollution aspect is overblown. Way worse problems come from storm drainage and sewage spills in the bay. I am not a “fan” of fireworks, but if they help bring more tourist and tax dollars into San Diego, then that is an arguable reason to maintain them in my mind. But if there were a true scientific study (not a biased one funded by Greenpeace for example), that showed substantial negative effect, that would change my opinion.
Numerous studies and research articles have investigated the environmental impacts of fireworks. Here are some examples:
1. Air Quality Studies: Research has examined the chemical composition of airborne particles emitted by fireworks and their effects on air quality. Studies often analyze pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and heavy metals. For example, a study published in the journal Atmospheric Environment titled “Air quality impacts of fireworks displays” by K. W. Simpson et al. (2008) investigated the air quality effects of fireworks displays in New Zealand.
2. Water Quality Studies: Several studies have explored the contamination of water bodies by fireworks fallout. These studies examine the presence of chemicals and heavy metals in water samples collected before and after fireworks events. An example is the study “Chemical composition and mutagenic effects of fine particles emitted from Chinese firecrackers” by K. Wang et al. (2013), published in Atmospheric Environment, which investigated the chemical composition and mutagenic effects of particles emitted by Chinese firecrackers.
3. Ecological Impact Assessments: Research has assessed the ecological impacts of fireworks on various ecosystems, including terrestrial and aquatic environments. These studies examine the effects of fireworks noise, pollution, and debris on wildlife, vegetation, and ecosystems. For instance, a study titled “The effects of fireworks pollution on ambient air quality in Malta” by S. M. Micallef et al. (2018), published in the journal Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, investigated the effects of fireworks displays on air quality in Malta.
4. Health Impact Studies: Some research has explored the potential health effects of exposure to fireworks emissions on human populations, particularly vulnerable groups such as individuals with respiratory conditions or children. These studies often analyze hospital admissions data, respiratory symptoms surveys, or air pollution exposure assessments. An example is the study “Respiratory health effects of the emissions from fireworks” by A. K. Sehlstedt et al. (2010), published in the journal Inhalation Toxicology, which investigated the respiratory health effects of fireworks emissions on children in Sweden.
References please, with who conducted the research and who paid for the research, s this can make a huge difference in the results. .
You are right that not all dogs and cats are afraid of fireworks. It could be for a variety of reason – personality and exposed to loud noises when they were young.
However, it is clear there are dogs and cats that are terrified of fireworks.
Amit Dhuleshia i have a solution. How can I contact you please?
Thank you
You can email me at adhulesh@gmail.com
It’s the middle of July, the venue does the show every night, and every night at 9:50pm my dog starts shivering uncontrollably for about an hour while running to hide under the bed. And we live by the stadium and hear them clearly every single night. We get the same response when the stadium does a couple fireworks and he is terrified.
I emailed Snapdragon asking them to publish a schedule of when they will be doing fireworks so I can take my dog on a little road trip away from the area with no response. Permits have to be obtained for fireworks and the fire Marshall is aware, so they should be able to publish this info.
Just because your pets don’t care, doesn’t mean others don’t. And to say what studies have shown that it affects animals, I’d ask you the same. What studies have been done to show they don’t? SeaWorld has to have done some study to show that their animals don’t care, right? If our pets care, then some of their animals must be equally terrified.
The fireworks don’t draw people, the animals and rides do. And I’m sure it’s a bid to get people to stay another hour at night so they’ll buy just one more hot dog, just one more bubble gun, just one more shirt.
And why was it again that Sea World couldn’t pay the rent to the City (that is, to us, the taxpayers of San Diego)? Are there any fish in Mission Bay any more to voice their objections to the fireworks? Or any marine life? What, they moved away? I guess they thought it was too quiet during COVID, and moved to a livelier community. Dogs and cats do not have voting rights as they are not naturally-occurring species. But one entity does have a voice. The City Government of San Diego. Where are they?
There are little to no fish. etc in the bay because of sewage and garbage spills, not fireworks. If that were the case all sea life would be disappearing along the coast, which is not the case; people fish off the piers with no problems. & Sea Lions are flourishing in the area. If ur digs are shivering for over an hr what are c you sing to hello then? Products like Calm can help your dogs with noise and I would imagine if your dog responds that way that your dog responds to most noises outside the house.
I want to participate. I can’t do it next Thursday but please notify me of any more events.
All the animals in and around Mission Bay need us to take action for them.
Kay Stewart
Hi Kay, you can register here to keep updated. https://sxfa.org/join-us/. Also if you follow us on social media – we will send city council meetings. The next one will be in the middle of March.
Amit
Wow, Vincent, if you can’t get “local”, try and get global! Literally, the entire planet is, crawling, toward acknowledgement of this terrible environmental and psychological footprint- in bays and coastlines all over the world! Drone shows, laser light shows, all sorts of alternative things that might float your visionary needs are on offer. We have enough problems trying to conserve our near shore waters and spp, w/out having to deal w/ the unacceptable recalcitrance of entities like Seaworld. Please- take your ” pass holder” status and advocate for something better! :-)
I like the fireworks a lot, an feel lucky that I have a direct view of them. That being said, I think the frequency could be reduced. A 50% reduction would result in a 50% reduction of pollution, and folks like me would still get a fireworks fix. This would be consistant with what we do with cars (reduce pollution without totally eliminating it) and with powerplants etc.
I also suggest that it would help if SeaWorld could publish a schedule of fireworks ahead of time so that people could plan ahead and prepare. I’d like to invite a few friends over to share a glass of wine while we watch the fireworks, and people with nervous pets could put them somewhere safe like and interior room with closed windows that would reduce the volume. Perhaps the protesters could spend some of their energy doing some research and publishing some sort of calendar to inform concerned citizens of all planned fireworks displays ahead of time. While they’re at it they could check up on the permit status.
Lastly, I wish the author (and some others) would refrain from exaggerating the problem by saying the fireworks occur nightly. Amit said SeaWorld’s are up to 150 days a year, which seems credible to me. As a person with direct view I can say I hardly ever see fireworks in winter. I can’t remember seeing any since around new years. Such exaggeration reduces the credibility of everything else she says. There are a lot of other fireworks around town that she may be hearing, but even so it is not every night.
Appreciate your perspective.
A question – would you be ok with say major holiday fireworks. Say July 4th weekend and New Years celebration. And perhaps alternative shows that are more environmentally, animal and veteran friendly? As a counter argument to 50% less is those things you mentioned are essentially necessities as opposed to fireworks which are entertainment in your description.
Yea i do have the permits for 2023. I will see what 2024 looks like, but its a good idea to have that published somewhere.
They can have a max of 150 based on law in the SeaWorld Master Plan. So it is definitely not more but could be less and varies year to yer.
Might want to check your facts. There has been studies done about the fireworks in Mission bay and the FACTS are that Fireworks do not pollute the bay; as a matter of fact the area around the fireworks barge is one of the cleanest areas of the bay. The chart that you posted is OLD! Just like any industry, Fireworks is an ever evolving science. Fireworks no longer contain many of the chemicals that are on that list (arsenic for one). Sea World and the Fireworks company have been good stewards of the bay and have collected the PAPER debris that is left by the fireworks. Fireworks do not explore the defalgrate (completely burn up) being most of what they are comprise of craft paper, rice paper, rice hulls and black powder, along with the small amounts of material added to add the color to the fireworks) is completely destroyed by the lighting of the firework. I sorry you don’t enjoy this Art form and I am sorry that your little dog is so nervous that it is still frightened by fireworks after this amount of time (which is VERY LONG). The show is scheduled the same every night, might want put your dog in the bathroom during the brief amount of time that the show is happening.
Well, here is the other side.
Id like to say this is absolutely incorrect. I have worked 18 years at one of the municipal July 4th shows and the debris we clean up every night is astounding. They don’t make the fireworks to burn up easier, they do it to sell more. Pyrospectacular and other local companies purchase in bulk from China and you can bet that they don’t make these clean.
I’ll tell you what, go to your local highschool the morning early after a 4th show and see how much crap is still on the ground after the cleanup. It’s pretty shocking.
I did comment earlier about my dog being scared and didn’t want to contradict myself by saying I worked shows before. I do not any longer and have not for the last 2 years because of the impact to our pets and getting real serious about looking at the stuff we were cleaning up. But, I had to say something because this comment is bogus.
Sigh, ok Donna and others who are trying to tease out the justifications. How about we just start with one word: excessive.
And, as Amit posited, in a compromise suggestion, how about just TWO fireworks displays, say July 4 and NYE, and then splice in laser shows or drone performances for the other (still far too many, imo) evening attractions in which folks want to see the night sky illuminated. I mean, really, how hard IS it, to do what’s right? :/ And Seaworld, pay your fecking rent- how hard is THAT?!!
There was a major dispute on how much was owed, December 2024. $8.8 mil plus Sea Works must provide:
•Complimentary season passes to county teachers for a five-year period
•One free ticket for any active-duty military and veterans for each year in a five-year period
•Provision of 1,000 free tickets to the city for distribution among school districts in the city of San Diego
Teachers get Season Passes but military only get ONE ticket, & they have to be active-duty; no veterans?! What the heck???! And 1,000 tickets to schools to use at their discretion (we know how many of those tickets will be used and they won’t be for students); we can tell who had more pull/say. So you can now relax and stop your pay your rent campaign.
As Ocean Beach demonstrated last 4th of July, drone shows are the future! The same old fireworks are boring in comparison. The highlight for me was a surfer shooting a blue tube of light with “Surfin’ USA” playing on the awestruck crowd’s phones in the background. With lighted drones, anything is possible. Instead of wasting money on fireworks, maybe SeaWorld could generate some of that back rent by finding sponsors for drone shows, which could display the sponsors’ logos with a “Brought to you by …..” message spelled out in light.
Oh yeah, viewers want to see an advertised “brought to you by” as they’re “ooing & awwing! ?.
Has this effort led to any discussion with policy-makers about reducing fireworks to any degree? These comments were made five months ago.
No it has not. We went to mission beach town council, ocean beach town council and also pacific beach town council – in hopes of getting support from the town council.. The mission beach town council board voted against the proposal to restrict fireworks at SeaWorld.
Also what we heard from city council staff is that the city council (environment committee) does not want to make any policy changes regarding SeaWorld until the lawsuit is finished.
We have multiple organizations supporting this initiative, but we would need support from the town councils and then maybe that will help with the city council members. But hopefully, this latest finidings by audobon society puts more pressure on them.
Amit, where can I read the Audubon Society’s findings that you mention?
Voice of San Diego. Somehow the link is not posting!