A fireworks show planned in Redondo Beach is one of five in LA County that will not go on due to new regulations about shooting fireworks over the ocean.
Next week’s party will go on as planned, but without the electrifying end that everyone is used to seeing.
“It’s spectacular, it’s fun, it’s 4th of July,” Joan Brogdon, a Redondo Beach resident, said.
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Just a week away from Independence Day, people in Redondo Beach who were looking forward to fireworks at the pier received some disappointing news.
“I don’t understand why we can’t have them, there’s gotta be a way,” Brogdon said.
As of May 25, firework shows in LA County now require a permit from the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board.
Pyro Spectacular, the company responsible for the Redondo Beach show, wrote a letter to the city saying: “We have determined that we cannot safely comply with the General Permit requirements without endangering our crews, emergency personnel, the public, and others involved in the event.”
Redondo Beach Fire Chief Patrick Butler said the city tried to submit its own permit on the company’s behalf, but Pyro refused to move forward.
“Yeah we’re disappointed but we’re gonna have a contingency plan which will be to have a party at our seaside lagoon instead,” Butler said.
After a district court ruling in March, saying fireworks shows should be subject to the Clean Water Act, the board now has a list of rules every firework company must follow.
The new permit prohibits plastic trash after a fireworks show and recommends companies use alternative or biodegradable fireworks.
No floating plastic can remain after the show and all debris must be collected the next morning.
The company must submit a pollution prevention plan and undergo monitoring of the plan’s implementation.
“I agree with those regulations. We don’t need the debris in the water. There should be some way that they should be able to capture those,” Brogdon said.
The water quality control board says they’ve reached out to known fireworks displays over coastal waters in the region to explain the permit requirements and offer assistance with permit applications.
So far, the board has received applications from six shows that are expected to go on as planned.
