Nizo­zemska Stranka za životinje podignula tužbu zbog odlaganja balona u prirodu


6 prosinca 2018

Party for the Animals MP Christine Teunissen has filed a case against Klaas Dijkhoff, leader of the Dutch governing and liberal party VVD, for dumping 500 balloons, ribbons and greeting cards in the environment. The balloons were released during a VVD congress last week. Teunissen: “Helium balloon litter is very harmful. Moreover, this was an advertising stunt and introducing promotional material into the environment is an economic offence. That is why the Party for the Animals wants to start a test case.”

The balloon is one of the common forms of litter on beaches. Balloons can end up in natural sites a long way across national frontiers or in the sea, where they contribute to the Great Pacific garbage patch and possibly enter the food chain. Birds and marine animals may get entangled in the strings or die of eating the balloon bits. The Party for the Animals in the Netherlands asks that political consideration is given to this matter. Moreover, initiatives such as Balloons Blow, Don’t Let them Go have shown that there are animal and environmentally friendly alternatives to balloons.

So-called biodegradable balloons are not a solution, as they degrade only under the right circumstances and still take years to degrade. These harmful effects were not considered by the VVD party. Teunissen: “Dijkhoff released his balloons, not having a clue of the damage he was causing. A typical example of the VVD’s short-termism. For a politician who is constantly telling others to ‘clean up their own mess’, Dijkhoff is setting a rather bad example.”


MP for the Dutch liberal party VVD eating a balloon

The liberal politicians of the VVD party seem to attach a rather high value to the release of balloons. In 2015, a VVD MP ate a balloon during a discussion on a possible ban on balloons in order to ‘show’ that balloons are supposedly safe for animals.

Test case

The Dutch Environmental Management Act among others states that deliberately dumping litter into the environment is prohibited. Furthermore, leaving promotional material in the public sphere is an economic offence. Still, the law rarely regards balloons as litter, which is not right according to the Party for the Animals.

Teunissen: “When someone who throws a can on the pavement is caught in the act, they will receive a penalty of 400 euros. But when 500 balloons with ribbons and greeting cards attached are released in the environment, there is no punishment at all. It is high time to be very clear about the dangers of balloons.”

Christine Teunissen, nizozemska zastupnica za Stranku za životinje, podnijela je tužbu protiv Klaas Dijkhoffa, vođa nizozemske liberalne i vladajuće stranke (VVD), zbog odlaganja 500 balona, s trakama i karticama u prirodu. Baloni su pušteni prošli tjedan tijekom Kongresa VVD-a. „Helijski baloni su štetan otpad. Osim toga, štos je promocija i stoga ostavljajući promotivni materijal u okoliš jeste gospodarski prekršaj. Stranka za životinje želi probno suđenje” objašnjava Teunissen .

Balon je jedan od najčešćih vrsta otpada na plažama. Baloni ponekad slijeću u prirodu daleko preko nacionalnih granica ili u moru, gdje pridonose plastičnoj juhi i ulaze u hranidbeni lanac. Ptice i morske životinje mogu se zapetljati u žice ili umrijeti kad pojedu ostatke balona. Nizozemska Stranka za životinje u politici za to traži pozornost. Inicijative kao što su Balloons Blow, Don’t Let them Go pokazuju da postoje alternative za balone koje su bolje za životinje i prirodu.

Takozvani bio razgradivi baloni nisu rješenje: oni se mogu razgraditi u prirodi samo pod pravim uvjetima, što traje godinama. VVD nije uzimao u obzir ove štetne učinke. Teunissen: „Dijkhoff je pustio svoje balone a zatim nema pojma o patnji koju je izazvao.
Tipično kratkoročno razmišljanje VVD-a. Političar koji ne propušta ni jednu prigodu da uzvikne ”počisti svoj nered ” daje s ovom akcijom pogrešan primjer. ”


Gradski vijećnik nizozemske liberalne stranke VVD jede balon

Čini se da liberalni političari iz VVD-a jako cijene puštanje balona. Gradski vijećnik ove stranke je 2015. pojeo balon tijekom rasprave o mogućoj zabrani balona, da „dokaže” da su baloni bezopasni za životinje.

Probno suđenje

Prema, između ostaloga, nizozemskom Zakonu za zaštitu okoliša, zabranjeno je namjerno ostavljanje otpada u okoliš. Također, ostavljanje promotivnog materijala u javnom prostoru je gospodarski prekršaj. Međutim, baloni su rijetko klasificirani kao otpad unutar zakonodavstva. Stranka za životinje smatra da je to pogrešno.

Teunissen: „Ako netko baci limenku na ulicu i uhvati ga na djelu, dobiva kaznu od 400 eura, ali kad se 500 balona s trakama i čestitkama raspu u prirodu, kazna se ne izvršava. Krajnje je vrijeme da se razjasni da su baloni jednostavno opasni. “