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  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • Mission and Vision Statement
    • Equality and Diversity Policy
    • BSBO Board of Directors
    • BSBO Staff
    • New Brand Launch
    • Visit BSBO >
      • Directions
      • Building Improvements
      • Anna Macke Mikolajczyk Window On Wildlife
      • John Gallagher Memorial Birding Trail
    • eNews
    • BSBO Blogs >
      • BSBO CONSERVATION BLOG
      • BSBO Bird Bander's Blog
      • BSBO Education and Outreach Blog
    • Contact Us
  • Support BSBO
    • Donate
    • Join or Renew
    • BSBO Swamp Shop
    • Education Center
    • Sponsor A Mist Net
    • Help BSBO while you shop
    • Birds and Business Alliance
    • Birder Tea Fundraiser
  • RESEARCH
    • Peer-Reviewed Publications
    • Songbird Research >
      • Migration Monitoring >
        • Migration Tracking
      • Prothonotary Warbler Research
      • Building Collision Study
      • Oak Openings
    • Morning Flight Count
    • Project SNOWstorm >
      • About Project SNOWstorm
      • Meet Buckeye
      • Meet Wolverine
    • Research Highlights >
      • Gray-Cheeked Thrush from Colombia, South America
      • BSBO Bird Bander's Blog
    • Past Research >
      • Colonial Wading Birds
      • Ohio Winter Bird Atlas
      • Shorebirds
    • Reports >
      • Annual Project Reports
      • Navarre Marsh Annual Banding and Survey Data
    • Research Volunteer Form
    • Research Volunteer Page
  • EDUCATION
    • Bird Migration Profiles
    • Family Activities >
      • Free Online Resources
    • Young Birders >
      • Ohio Young Birders Club
      • Youth Birding Camps
    • Teachers >
      • Songbird Banding and Migration Programs
      • Students Against Balloon Releases
    • Group Programs >
      • Presentations by Request
    • BSBO Bird Knowins
  • Conservation
    • BioBlitzes
    • Bird-safe / Birder-friendly Communities
    • Responsible Wind Energy
    • Conservation Updates
    • Position Statement on Feral and Free-Ranging Cats
    • Habitat Designations
    • Easy Ways for YOU to Support Conservation
  • EVENTS & ACTIVITIES
    • Birding with BSBO >
      • BSBO's Biggest Week In American Birding
      • Frequent Flyer Birding
      • Lake Erie Pelagics
    • Birds at Home
    • Highway Clean-up
    • Calendar of Events
  • NW OHIO BIRDING
    • Responsible Owl Viewing
    • Regional Bird Checklist
    • Timing of Spring Migration
    • Timing of Fall Migration
    • Timing of Fall Shorebird Migration
    • Spring Migration Wave Theory
    • ABA Code of Birding Ethics
    • Birding Ohio

STUDENTS AGAINST BALLOON RELEASES (SABR)

PictureSABR logo designed by Scott Arvin
Students Against Balloon Releases (SABR) is a partnership between Black Swamp Bird Observatory and Benton-Carroll-Salem Schools. The program seeks to educate students about the dangers and wastefulness of mass balloon releases and other forms of litter, and empower them with the knowledge to educate others. 

“Benton-Carroll-Salem School District is excited to partner with Black Swamp Bird Observatory in creating Students Against Balloon Releases: a program that will provide valuable learning opportunities for our children in classrooms and in field settings. Our work together is a win for students, for our economy, for the overall safety of our communities, and for our natural habitat.”
                                                                                                                               -- Guy Parmigian, 
                                                                                                                               B-C-S Superintendent


Empowering Students

PictureA student collects balloon litter off of a local beach along Lake Erie
The SABR program encourages students to...
Use earth-friendly alternatives in place of balloons and sky lanterns
Help keep their school and county litter-free
Spend time outdoors enjoying nature, without litter!
Recycle!
Speak out against balloon / sky lantern releases in their community 
Invite family and friends to attend a beach or highway clean-up

The facts about balloon and sky lantern releases... they're UGLY!

PictureAll of these balloons were picked up along a 1/2 mile stretch of beach along Lake Erie in Ottawa, Co., OH
Where do you think balloons go when they are released into the atmosphere?

People have been releasing balloons for decades under the assumption that the balloons are biodegradable.  This is false!

Many people think they simply vanish, but the reality is that they can travel for thousands of miles before deflating and falling back to the ground as ugly litter. Many states have banned mass-littering events with balloons and sky lanterns. 


They are NOT Biodegradable.

Balloons and sky lanterns are marketed as 100% biodegradable.  Sky lanterns are made of wood, bamboo and paper.  Nothing is said about the metal support that holds the flame in place. These supports do not decompose. 

Latex balloons are often sold in bags of twelve or more at a very reasonable price.  Both latex and mylar balloons are falsely marketed as “100% biodegradable.”   The balloon industry wants you to believe that they simply “burst into extremely small pieces.”  In reality, they pop and fall back to the ground, resembling food for native wildlife. And they do NOT break down for months, sometimes YEARS! 

It’s Dangerous!

PictureA bird killed after becoming entangled by the strings of deflated balloon litter.

For animals...

When balloons are released, their strings often become entangled around wildlife causing 
starvation and death. Many animals mistake the deflated balloons for food, chocking or suffocating to death as a result. 

PictureA massive fire started by a sky lantern

Dangerous for people, too! 

T
hese forms of littering have been known to cause serious injury to wildlife and people. Massive fires can ignite when mylar balloons float into industrial or residential areas, or into high tension power lines. Sky lanterns are set on fire and released into the air with no control over when or where they land.


It’s Wasteful!  

Our country’s helium resources are needed for diagnostic medical testing and scientific research. Such as: 
  • Magnetic Resolution Imaging (MRI) 
  • Rocket Fuel
  • Space and Deep Sea Exploration
  • Laser Eye Surgery
  • As A Gas Shield for Arc-Welding
  • Cooling Nuclear Reactors
​​Wasting this natural, non-renewable resource for balloon releases is not an earth-friendly practice.
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Birds Elevate Us

We are located at the entrance of the Magee Marsh Wildlife Area
| 13551 W. State Route 2  |  Oak Harbor, Ohio 43449  |  419.898.4070  |