SEQUIM — The environmental impact of public fireworks displays and drone shows will be up for discussion at the Sequim City Council meeting on March 24.
Council members directed city staff last month to bring multiple talking points to the second meeting in March, including pros and cons of alternative celebrations to fireworks displays, and an answer to whether the city is violating federal bald eagle habitat and local wildlife statutes.
The push for a conversation came after a handful of Sequim residents spoke during the Feb. 24 council meeting.
Susan Griffin of Sequim was one of the residents who asked council members to cease fireworks displays and move the Sequim Sunshine Festival’s drone show away from Carrie Blake Community Park, citing concerns for pollution, fire danger and disruption and injury to eagles, waterfowl and other wildlife in and around the parks.
She said a gosling was found dead the morning after the fireworks display in the park last July 5, and that the city might be out of regulation with federal statutes due to the proximity of the fireworks to a known bald eagle’s nest.
Documentation she and others provided to the council said the nest is about 1,337 feet from the fireworks area, and 414 feet from the Water Reuse Pond, where ducks and geese congregate and could be conflicting with The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and other federal acts.
Jamie Porter, chair of Protect the Peninsula’s Future, shared her concerns about increased fire danger in the summer and the increased risk with fireworks and their harmful chemicals. She also noted noise pollution and how it impacts pets and those with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Porter supported a drone show replacing fireworks at a site that doesn’t draw wildlife.
“It’s important we celebrate holidays and special events, but there are less toxic and dangerous ways to celebrate those events,” she said.
Steve Koehler, a board member for the Olympic Environmental Council, advocated for banning fireworks displays, saying there are 145 species of birds that use the park and that more than 2,000 individual birds of various species were found to be using the park in a single survey.
“We should feel blessed to have so much wildlife in the park instead of discouraging them from being there,” Koehler said.
He also expressed concerns about fireworks’ potential fire impact on neighboring Garry Oak trees at the Sequim Prairie Oak/Prairie Restoration Project site, just north of the park.
These individuals and other groups and agencies wrote to the city, including state Department of Fish and Wildlife staff in September 2024, recommending the city move the fireworks show or switch to a drone show due to potential fire danger to the Garry Oak trees.
In response, council member Dan Butler said they’d be “remiss not to address” their concerns. He asked city staff about alleged violations of federal guidelines related to eagles, and city manager Matt Huish said it was a new issue to him and staff would have to investigate further.
“It seems worth looking into to make sure we’re not in violation now that we’re aware of it,” Butler said.
Council members agreed to discuss the issues and have staff research them.
Fireworks bans
Sequim City Council members unanimously agreed last October to ban the sale of commercial fireworks in city limits effective this October.
Sales will be allowed one more summer, from June 28 to July 5. The city’s municipal code allows one fireworks booth per 1,500 city residents with permits given preference to local nonprofits benefiting youth and other local nonprofits.
However, the discharge of fireworks in city limits was banned in July 2017 after an advisory vote in November 2016 during which city residents recommended the ban to with 65.6 percent in favor.
Council members agreed to start a public fireworks display on the Fourth of July at Carrie Blake Community Park instead. Those started in 2021.
Clallam County allows fireworks to be discharged only on July 4 in unincorporated areas of Sequim unless there is a high fire danger. Jefferson County allows the discharge of fireworks from June 28 to July 5 at various times.
Last year, Clallam County Fire District 3 staff reported that all fireworks-related fire calls on July 4 were in the city of Sequim.
________
Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. He can be reached by email at matthew.nash@sequimgazette.com.
