Working Towards an Eco-Friendly Fireworks Display

phobos13013 writes "Here's an article just in time for 4th of July fireworks shows! The ACS's Chemical and Engineering News provides a fairly technical discussion about the hazardous chemicals in modern fireworks displays. Perchlorate is currently the oxidizer of choice in fireworks, but it is also known to be a thyroid blocker. Since perchlorates are water-soluble anions, they dissolve into groundwater quickly. A study performed last summer over a lake in Ada, Oklahoma showed that less than a day after a fireworks display, the lake's chlorate levels jumped by a factor of 1,000. It took weeks for the levels to drop back down to their baseline. On the other hand, heavy metals are used to produce the pretty colors typically associated with the best fireworks. The trend is to start using nitrogen-based oxidizing fireworks; they produce less smoke, which means a smaller amount of colorizing agents can be used in displays."

Comments

Biodegradable bullets is next

[moteyalpha]

I think that the lead in bullets is poisoning the land where too many people are being shot and more attention should be applied to having a bullet that doesn't use heavy metal. /sarcasm

Re:PETA won't be satisfied

[Anonymous Coward]

I want to get rid of PETA because they scare me ;-)

Next up on PETA's forbidden list: thunder.

What about the Excess Nitrogen

[crmarvin42]

What about the negative impact of excess Nitrogen in water tables. Most people have heard about farms being a source of pollution, leading to eutrophication of ground water, algae blooms, fish kills, nasty smelling water, etc.

The 1st limiting nutrient in most aquatic environments is Nitrogen. It's the Nitrogen in animal waste that is the problem for surface water. I'd need to see the effect of Nitrogen based fireworks on Nitrogen levels in the water before I jump on this bandwagon.