In Our View: Fireworks: Know Rules

If you think you know the laws surrounding fireworks in Clark County, you might need to think again. Many changes take effect this year.

So, the first step to ensuring a safe and enjoyable holiday for all is to get the word out about those changes (tinyurl.com/y8cv2rjs). Most notably, the sale and use of personal pyrotechnics has been banned by the city of Vancouver — meaning those who live within the city limits. No longer will fireworks stands appear on street corners throughout the city; no longer will residents be allowed to celebrate the Fourth of July with a bang and a flash.

Camas and Washougal also have new limitations upon fireworks, but not bans, and residents should familiarize themselves with those restrictions. In unincorporated Clark County, the regulations differ north of Northeast 219th Street and south of that demarcation line, a change that went into effect last year.

Regardless of the regulations, it probably would be naive to think that everybody will adhere to the law, and the issue brings up important questions about the balance between individual freedom and the collective good. Those questions strike at the very meaning of the Fourth of July, which celebrates the formation of the United States as a self-governing entity devoted to being a beacon of liberty.

This celebration was predicted — sort of — by John Adams, who would go on to become the second president of the United States. On July 3, 1776, one day after the Continental Congress declared independence from Great Britain, Adams wrote to his wife: “The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.”

Adams was off by two days. Yet ever since that time, Americans have celebrated the great anniversary festival with ever brighter and ever louder illuminations. And those illuminations have become problematic.

In 2015, the Vancouver City Council passed a ban upon fireworks within the city, a ban that required a 365-day notice and therefore did not go into effect until this year. The move was in response to growing complaints and increasing dangers resulting from the use of fireworks in heavily populated areas. In 2015, fires caused by fireworks generated more than $500,000 worth of damage in the city.

It also led to questions about an individual’s right to annoy neighbors and create havoc. As Clark County Fire Marshal Jon Dunaway said last year: “Being a good neighbor can’t be regulated. Be a good neighbor, communicate what you’re doing. Just try to be as cooperative with each other as you can.” That remains imperative as the region prepares for the legal sale of fireworks in some areas beginning June 28.

Undoubtedly, the Vancouver ban was brought about by irresponsible residents who, we believe, are outnumbered by responsible citizens. It is a matter of a few bad apples spoiling the whole bunch. But city councilors weighed the evidence and listened to citizens and came to a reasonable conclusion that should be respected by all.

The first step, however, is to know which regulations govern where you live.