Ban on firecrackers or botti to protect animals and public safety.
Rome has banned the use of firecrackers in the capital from 1 December until 31 January in a move to protect animals and public safety, the city announced on Thursday.
The ban is permanent and does away with the need for temporary legislation prohibiting the use of explosive botti firecrackers – widely ignored – usually announced ahead of New Year’s Eve.
Patrizia Prestipino, Rome’s guarantor for animals, who is responsible for raising awareness for animal protection, said the ban “places public health and safety at the centre” and has been issued “in the name of civility and respect for the environment and animals”.
Prestipino said the ban responds to an “increasingly widespread awareness among citizens”, as demonstrated by a recent survey conducted by Italian animal rights organization LAV and research company DOXA last December, which concluded that “94 per cent of Italians oppose the use of firecrackers for New Year’s Eve celebrations”.
In a statement, she also said that it will no longer be necessary to resort to issuing bans in the days leading up to New Year’s Eve, acknowledging that they are “inevitably difficult to enforce”, stating that the move marked a shift “in mentality and culture”.
