Richard Parr says the Bonfire Night UK date debate should end with a hard cap on fireworks noise, not a small trim. Campaigners want the UK government to cut the maximum noise level of consumer fireworks from 120 decibels to 90 decibels, arguing that wild animals need stronger protection from stress and disturbance.
Parr, director of the Center for Wild Animal Welfare, said a loud firework can penetrate surprisingly far, up to 10km. He added: "Sound travels, and a loud firework can penetrate surprisingly far – up to 10km. Because decibels work on a [logarithmic] scale, each 10-decibel cut to the limit reduces the area affected by the noise by 10 times."
UK government plan at 110dB
The push comes after the UK government recently consulted on lowering the maximum noise level from 120dB to 110dB. That step would reduce the noise threshold, but campaigners say it does not go far enough. The Center for Wild Animal Welfare says a 90dB limit would help protect millions of wild animals from acute stress and would reduce the area disturbed by each firework.
That comparison is the core of the dispute. A 10-decibel cut shrinks the affected area by 10 times, so a move from 120dB to 110dB would be far smaller than a move to 90dB, which the Center for Wild Animal Welfare says would leave the disturbed area about 100 times smaller than under the government’s plan.
RSPCA and bird welfare
Rebecca Machin of the RSPCA said: "Fireworks and their debris can disturb a range of wild animals, particularly birds, causing suffering and distress." She added: "Depending on the distance from the explosive and the noise level, impacts include disrupted migration, elevated stress hormones, and hazards from leftover firework debris."
Research into fireworks and wild animals has found that birds experience particular harm during displays, including stress responses, mass temporary displacement and fatal collisions. On New Year’s Day in 2025, more than 1,000 birds were found dead near a hiking trail in Bulgaria, just over a kilometre from a site where fireworks had been set off.
New Zealand and next steps
The UK consultation also followed concerns about the noise and availability of fireworks raised in a parliamentary debate in January, along with petitions that drew more than 180,000 signatures each. It also looked at other rule changes, including expanding the list of fireworks banned from general sale and reviewing lower-risk products.
New Zealand introduced a 90dB limit on consumer fireworks in 2008, and also reduced the number of days consumer fireworks could be sold while raising the minimum purchase age from 14 to 18. For the UK, the immediate decision is whether to adopt the 90dB limit campaigners want, keep the 110dB proposal, or leave the rules unchanged.
The Bonfire Night UK date argument now turns on scale, not symbolism: a louder legal firework reaches farther, and that reach is what wildlife campaigners want the UK government to cut down.
