Madam,

I see that the front cover of your Aberystwyth edition of 8 November features a photograph of the Guy Fawkes night beach bonfires.

What weren’t featured were photographs of the bagfuls of fireworks, alcohol and food-related litter left by the hundreds of people there. It was also disappointing to see that there was no coverage of Aberystwyth Beach Buddies’ annual voluntary clean-up the next morning, the fireworks plastics they removed before the tide took them, the four hundred plus sparklers that were left strewn all over this beach, the scores of wood nails left in the pebbles or the fact that several fires were not responsibly extinguished.

Fireworks contain plastic components. Every November they are launched directly into Cardigan Bay and the British coast to join the eight million tonnes of plastic pollution currently destroying the oceans and food chain. The beach fireworks are also unregulated and unsafe. I have myself seen fireworks misfiring during rubbish collections on the beach. That’s not where I’d take children to enjoy fireworks at all.

Can we please discourage fireworks on beaches and in natural environments full stop and instead support properly organised, spectacular displays like the one held by Aberystwyth Rotary Club where safe distances are in place and where plastic litter is at least cleaned up and properly disposed of later.

Next year please do send a photographer to South Beach at 7am, 6 November for the ‘after’ shot. Having a good time should never cost the earth.

Yours etc,

S Obermaier, Eastgate, Aberystwyth.

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