To many Disneyland guests the nightly fireworks show often caps off a delightful Disney day with an exciting touch of electrifying magic. Perfectly choreographed pops of color & memory-evoking music sounds in the hearts of many Disney Park fans, especially during the summer months when the parks are filled and children are out of school. What happens when you live in the neighborhood surrounding Disneyland? Either you see the noise & spectacle as a fun novelty, or you don’t. For those that don’t, living in Mickey’s ‘hood has become quite a hindrance.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Disneyland puts on 250 fireworks displays per year, forcing many local residents to install double-paned windows, add extra insulation to soundproof their homes, & often fight the shower of ash and corrosive sulfur from ruining their lawns and swimming pools.
“We’re OK with fireworks on the Fourth of July and New Year’s, but considering the density of the population here, you shouldn’t have it every night,” said Denis Fitzgerald, who filed the suit and is a member of Anaheim Homeowners for Maintaining Their Environment (HOME), a loose coalition of activists who live near the park.” -Los Angeles Times
One resident filed a suit against Anaheim in federal court claiming that the city was violating federal water pollution laws. Even though the suit was dismissed, many residents continue to be concerned about the reported noise & environmental pollution caused by Disneyland’s frequent fireworks displays.
Moving to a more environmentally sensitive approach in the past decade, Disney has switched to a compressed air system, instead of the traditional black powder method of launching fireworks. Disneyland reps claim that this results in safer, quieter pyrotechnics that emit less smoke and pollution.
“To their credit, they developed a number of technical innovations that had a significant impact on reducing smoke and fallout,” said Sam Atwood, a spokesman for the South Coast Air Quality Management District. (Los Angeles Times)
Whether Mickey’s neighbors are ‘friend or foe’ of the nightly fireworks it would, perhaps, be neat to entertain visiting family & friends on your patio by impressing them with a display so grand. I guess eventually the magic of the “Ohhhh” & “Ahhhh” wears off, but one would think moving into Anaheim would come with some unavoidable givens; tourist traffic, the commercial rush, and the noise of Disneyland fireworks.
This post is part of the DisMarks Disney Blog Carnival, which features dozens of great Disney-related articles from new and established bloggers.
