Silent fireworks request from animal activists over holiday period

Animal activists have taken aim at New Year’s Eve celebrations at a favourite Western Australian tourism hotspot.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has written to the Rottnest Island Authority asking it to use “silent” fireworks to “create a stress free-environment” for quokkas.

Animal rights campaigners say quokkas, like many other animals, are terrified by fireworks.

“Wildlife tend to be terrified by noises like that because they just don’t have an understanding of it being for fun like we do,” PETA spokesperson Emily Rice said.

While not completely silent, the alternative fireworks that PETA suggest use less explosive material and don’t create bangs as loud as traditional displays.

“We find that the noise is a really big issue for making animals flee or making animals panic,” Ms Rice said.

The Rottnest Island Authority says since the first fireworks in 2015, quokka behaviour has been monitored and they’ve shown no signs of distress, arguing they continue to feed and display normal behaviours during these events.

Rob Cardile will be running this year’s display and says the fireworks will be launched from barges 600 metres out in Thomson Bay.

“The activity on the Island from the music and people would have more noise impact than the fireworks,” he argued.