The German environmental aid calls for a final abolition of firecrackers on New Year’s Eve and, among other things, uses the argument of fine dust pollution. The responsible federal ministry rejects the request, but does not rule out another ban due to the pandemic.
The Federal Ministry of the Interior has rejected the demand by the German Environmental Aid for a general ban on firecrackers on New Year’s Eve. When asked, a spokeswoman said that a corresponding ban had been decided by the federal and state governments at the turn of the year 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 due to the corona pandemic. “It is currently not possible to foresee whether a situation will arise again that will require a comparable decision,” she added.
In the past two years, the sale of New Year’s Eve fireworks was prohibited throughout Germany due to the corona pandemic, and at the same time there was a ban on gathering and assembly on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. The aim of this measure at the time was to protect hospitals from being overloaded – among other things by preventing injuries caused by fireworks on New Year’s Eve.
The German Environmental Aid had asked Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser on Tuesday to end the firecrackers “once and for all” this year. With a few simple changes to the Explosives Ordinance, the minister could quickly put an end to environmentally harmful fireworks, said Federal Managing Director Jürgen Resch. The environmental aid cites, among other things, the high level of fine dust pollution from New Year’s firecrackers and rockets as an argument for a ban.
The deputy chairman of the FDP parliamentary group, Konstantin Kuhle, also opposed the environmentalists’ proposal. He said: “The annual fireworks display is an important New Year’s tradition for many people.” Calls for a general ban also contribute to shaking people’s trust in state institutions. After all, the bans of the past two years were linked to a specific reason. Since this reason is no longer given, the ban must also be dropped – “otherwise the state will lose credibility”.
