It’s an all too common sight after the Fourth of July weekend. Streets and public places are strewn with the tattered paper and debris from private fireworks celebrations across the city.

While it is legal for citizens to use fireworks in the city limits (as long as they are purchased from locally-approved fireworks vendors), it isn’t legal to litter public places with the debris.

One area most sensitive to the problem is the City of Wichita’s public parks and parking lots. The annual post-holiday cleanup of public areas by city employees is a major task, and one that could be avoided if conscientious citizens cleaned up after their private fireworks displays, says Doug Kupper, Director of Parks and Recreation.

“We certainly want everyone to celebrate this important holiday and to enjoy the spectacle of private fireworks,” Kupper said. “But we also want to stress the need for personal responsibility. The leftover debris is not only a nuisance, but can also be a hazard to the operation of some public recreation facilities such as swimming pools.”

Public streets are another popular spot for private fireworks displays, and the same admonition applies to those areas.

“We will get several calls from citizens complaining about the debris left in public streets,” said Bill Emmons, City of Wichita Street Services Supervisor. “It would be a great help if people would take the time to clean up after themselves and not leave it for the street cleaners.”

Failure to clean up fireworks debris in city parks is a violation of the City of Wichita municipal code, Sec. 04.100, which reads:

“It is unlawful for any person in any public parks, recreation facilities or other property under the ownership, jurisdiction or control of the board of park commissioners of the City of Wichita, Kansas, to … (b) …:

Dump, deposit or leave any bottles, broken glass, ashes, paper, boxes, cans, dirt, rubbish, waste, garbage or refuse, or other trash, in any public parks, recreational facilities or other property under the ownership, jurisdiction or control of the board of park commissioners of the City of Wichita, Kansas, except in proper receptacles where these are provided.”

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