CLA insists the threat posed by sky lanterns is being overlooked

The rural lobbyists claim the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs had based its refusal of an outright ban of sky lanterns on an “inconclusive and unsatisfactory” report by a consultancy.

Harry Cotterell, the CLA’s president, said the report by agriculture and environment agency ADAS, entitled ‘Sky lanterns and helium balloons: an assessment of impacts on livestock and the environment’, has failed to recognise just how serious a threat the fad poses to property, crops and livestock.

Mr Cotterell said: “Defra is under the impression that the main risk posed by sky lanterns is to aircraft. In fact, there is plenty of evidence these flying bonfires are damaging property and crops and harming and killing cattle.

“Even the ADAS report concluded that ‘the fire risk associated with the use of sky lanterns is significant’, reported around 16 cases of injury or death to cattle, sheep or horses and admitted there may be a ‘significant level of under-reporting by veterinary surgeons and others’. Yet this inconclusive and unsatisfactory report still concluded the impact on livestock was very small.”

He said the CLA was advising its members not to use sky lanterns and to ban their use by others on their land.

“We would like Mr Heath to take our call for a ban seriously for the sake of farming and property owners,” Mr Cotterell said.

In a review of the impacts of sky lanterns with the report produced by ADAS, the consultancy says: “Evidence reviewed by the project team indicates that the number of cases reported each year of animals affected through panic and fright and of ingestion of sky lantern debris is very small.

“It is recognised that there may be a significant level of under-reporting at present and that the true impacts may be higher.”

The report goes on to state: “On the basis of the evidence presented in this report, while recognising the impact of individual cases it is difficult to conclude that the overall impact of sky lanterns on livestock and animal health is anything other than of minor significance.”

The study was jointly commissioned by the English and Welsh governments.