Manning Park Spring Fair Case Study
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Desktop Review and Impact Assessment of Fireworks Display - Manning Park Spring Fair Case Study 16 February 2021 Prepared for INTEGRATE SUSTAINABILITY PTY LTD Document Set ID: 10264942 Version: 1, Version Date: 02/03/2021 Desktop Review and Impact Assessment of Fireworks Displays – Manning Park Spring Fair Case Study Integrate Sustainability Pty Ltd 23 Eaglehawk Drv Ravenswood WA 6208 Lower Ground Floor 3 Richardson St West Perth WA 6005 P: (08) 9468 0338 E: [email protected] ABN: 18 602 180 512 Report Version Prepared By Reviewed By Submitted to Client Method Date Rev 1 BO AE, BB, SM Email 25/11/2020 Final BB CB Final 26/11/2020 Rev 2 BO BB Email 10/02/2021 Revised Final BB CB Email 16/02/2021 This report should be cited as “Integrate Sustainability 2021. Desktop Review and Impact Assessment of Fireworks Displays – Manning Park Spring Fair Case Study”. Report prepared for “City of Cockburn”. This document has been prepared to the requirements of the Client and is for the use by the Client, its agents, and Integrate Sustainability Pty Ltd (ISPL). Copyright associated with the document belongs to “City of Cockburn” and ISPL. No liability or responsibility is accepted in respect of any use by a third party or for purposes other than for which the document was commissioned. ISPL has not attempted to verify the accuracy and completeness of information supplied by the Client. This document has been prepared based on assumptions as reported throughout and upon information and data supplied by others or generated by Integrate Sustainability Pty Ltd (Integrate Sustainability). This document has been subject to review and changes from the Client and the Client’s representative. Page | i Document Set ID: 10264942 Version: 1, Version Date: 02/03/2021 Desktop Review and Impact Assessment of Fireworks Display - Manning Park Spring Fair Case Study Executive Summary Integrate Sustainability Pty Ltd (ISPL) was engaged by the City of Cockburn to undertake a desktop review and environmental impact assessment (EIA) on fireworks displays using the Manning Park Spring Fair as a Case Study. This report presents potential impacts associated with fireworks displays in general as well as assessing the potential impact associated with the minor firework display at Manning Park. EIA involves examining and identifying potential consequences or impacts to the environment and is used as a decision making and planning tool. To complete the EIA, a desktop review of approximately 85 documents was undertaken to ascertain the context of the local environment of the City of Cockburn and understand the environmental impacts associated with fireworks albeit on a larger scale than Manning Park. These findings are summarised below. Local Environment The City of Cockburn is located approximately 15km south of Perth on the Swan Coastal Plain and occupies a land area of 168km2. Cockburn is largely residential but also includes industrial areas, wetlands and a number of areas of conservation significance such as Beeliar and Jandakot Regional Parks, Woodman Point and several Reserves. The Rotary Spring Fair is held annually at Manning Park on the last Sunday of October and finishes with a mid and ground level firework display ranging in height from approximately 5m to 140m above ground level and lasting approximately 10 minutes. The display is considered minor in comparison to other displays occurring in the metropolitan area and is the only fireworks display undertaken by the City. Manning Park is situated in the north-western section of the City of Cockburn, approximately 500m from the coast, north of Azelia Road. Manning Park forms part of the Beeliar Regional Park and is surrounded by residential properties and land developments on all sides except the west which hosts a small industrial area. A NatureMap search was conducted for the City of Cockburn area which identified a total 456 fauna species, 34 of which are of conservation significance. An Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 Protected Matters Report identified 59 conservation significant fauna species as potentially utilising the area. Fireworks and Environmental Impacts Fireworks consist of several main chemical components which react in a designed manner to produce the desired array of bright light and accompanying sound effect. The general components include gun powder (potassium nitrate), sulphur, charcoal, an oxidising agent (usually either nitrate, chlorate, or perchlorate) and metal salts to produce various colours. Firework displays have been known to result in an increase of particulate matter concentrations of 5 to 20 times background concentrations and remain in the atmosphere for between 16 hours and up to a month. Increased concentrations of particulate matter may cause respiratory difficulties even after only short durations of exposure. Despite the literature focusing on human health impacts, similar impacts are considered likely for fauna. The scale of these impacts is linked to the volume of fireworks and duration of the display. Manning Park fireworks are considered to be at the lower end of the scale. Oxidising agents used in fireworks can contaminate soil, groundwater and surface water within a reasonable radius of the display. Oxidising agents such as perchlorate are readily water-soluble and return to the ground through precipitation thereby impacting the quality of soil, groundwater and surface water and the health of organisms through uptake. Perchlorate concentrations have been found to decrease over time following firework displays, however the impact of accumulation has not been studied. Areas in which firework displays happen regularly would be expected show a gradual increase of perchlorate levels over time as the gradual Page | ii Document Set ID: 10264942 Version: 1, Version Date: 02/03/2021 Desktop Review and Impact Assessment of Fireworks Display - Manning Park Spring Fair Case Study increase in perchlorate concentration is likely to make dilution less effective. Again this will be impacted by the volume of fireworks and duration of the display. Many different types of metals are included in fireworks to create colourful displays. The combustion of fireworks releases metals into the atmosphere resulting in elevated metal concentrations for up to several days which only decrease due to dissipation. Metals released from fireworks may be deposited in soils or waterbodies or breathed in by humans or fauna. Many of the metals used in fireworks have carcinogenic or toxic impacts on humans, flora and fauna. Fireworks have been recorded reaching noise levels up to 190dB and averaging 90dB for the duration of the display. These noise levels can damage human hearing and cause a behavioural reaction in animals. While in most cases animals exhibit shivering or cowering, mainly stationary responses, some species exhibit flight responses which can lead to injury and death in extreme cases through blunt-force trauma. Birds, primarily seabirds have been observed abandoning their nests and, in some cases, not returning following the completion of the display. In an effort to minimise impacts the Manning Park fireworks include ground level silent fireworks in the display. Other impacts from fireworks include light pollution, waste and litter generation and fire. Limited research has been conducted on the impact of light generated from firework displays, however it is likely to cause a flight response in birds. Paper or cardboard packaging is likely to not be entirely combusted during the explosion of the firework device and therefore will return to the ground creating a source of pollution or choking hazard for fauna. The Manning Park display tries to limit any waste by using fibre glass cartridges in many of the displays that are collected and used over and over again. Impact Assessment The research indicates that fireworks cause plumes of pollution as a result of combustion. The smoke generated contains traces of particulate matter, metals, non-combusted residues such as oxidising agents and inorganic by-products, a number of which are known carcinogens or impact healthy respiratory functioning. Based on the size and duration of the Rotary Spring Fair firework display, the height at which most of the display takes place and the likely weather conditions, it is unlikely the fireworks display will have a medium or long-term impact on the City of Cockburn air quality, although impact is likely to occur in the short term. Metals and other particulates produced from or remaining after the combustion of the fireworks are likely to be deposited in Manning Park, either over the land or into the lake. It is unlikely the Rotary Spring Fair firework display will produce contaminants in concentrations high enough to impact the quality of the soil and water, and health of flora and fauna, but there is the potential for contaminates to accumulate over time causing long-term impacts. Loud noises such as those produced from fireworks are likely to cause a fear response for most animals. However, single short-duration events such as fireworks are unlikely to result in chronic stress, which could result in a significant behavioural and physiological response and impacts. Other than immediate responses such as flight, running or cowering, medium or long-term impacts are unlikely. The greatest risk perceived to fauna is that caused by blunt-force trauma injuries to animals trying to flee the area. Of further consideration is the similarities between fireworks