It’s now party season and we’re coming up to new year’s eve – which means the boom and screech of fireworks.
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Hawkesbury Council said there is a spike in admissions at the animal shelter after new year’s eve (and from large storms) from dogs found lost after bolting in fright.
The Gazette asked out Facebook readers what they thought about fireworks in rural and residential areas, even with a permit, and most condemned them.
A campaign in the UK called Ban the Bang is trying to stop fireworks there due to harm to animals, and a Google search throws up US petitions calling for banning of fireworks in rural areas.
Should fireworks be allowed in Hawkesbury's rural areas with large populations of livestock and dogs?
Hawkesbury Mayor Kim Ford said it was all about notification and position of the display.
He used to run fireworks nights at Yarramundi as a fundraiser for the rural fire brigade in the 90s.
“We used to notify about 400 people in a radius of about three kilometres at least a fortnight before, with letterbox drops,” he said. “We also notified people across the river.
“The fireworks at the Sebel are pretty good and at Hanna Park and I don’t know of complaints about them them but there’s no real need for them in rural areas.
“Illegal fireworks are the biggest problem. If they don’t have a permit you don’t know about it. If you’ve got a permit and a genuine use I think it’s all right. It comes down to picking the right spot and notifying people.”