TOI correspondant from Washington: Some two centuries after Tipu Sultan’s Mysore projectiles, parlayed by the British into Congreve missiles, led Francis Scott Key to note the “rocket’s red glare” in the Star Spangled Banner, the US capital is about to discover that fireworks, no matter where they come from, are no fun on a fiendishly hot summer night.As temperatures in much of the US are forecast hit record highs on July 4, the Trump administration is pressing ahead with what it promises will be the biggest pyrotechnics gala in history to mark America’s 250th birthday, an extravaganza so enormous it aims to earn a Guinness World Record while simultaneously testing the atmosphere’s capacity to absorb smoke.Washingtonians are accustomed to spectacular Independence Day displays over the National Mall. This year, however, “spectacular” is being bumped up to “supersized.” Organizers say more than 860,000 pyrotechnic effects will light up the skies during a 40-minute finale, roughly 50 times the number used in a typical Fourth of July celebration, which usually features 17,000 to 20,000 shells over less than 20 minutes.The Pennsylvania-based fireworks company Pyrotecnico, one of the country’s largest specialists in the business, has brought in more than 50 truckloads of fireworks, with launches coordinated from the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, West Potomac Park and eight barges anchored on the Potomac River. Around 60 technicians will synchronize the display in what organizers hope will become the world’s largest fireworks show.Environmentalists, however, are not impressed. Fireworks are essentially colorful chemical explosions, releasing clouds of fine particulate matter, sulfur compounds, heavy metals and greenhouse gases into the air. Studies have consistently shown that air pollution spikes dramatically during major fireworks displays, sometimes reaching levels considered unhealthy, particularly for children, older adults and people with respiratory illnesses. To say nothing of what it does to terrified pets.Meteorologists are predicting afternoon highs to touch 104°F (40°C), with a stagnant air index that already has local pulmonologists hyperventilating. In Washington, a city built on an actual swamp, high heat traps particulate matter close to the ground, creating a toxic dome of ozone and smog. Adding tens of thousands of chemical explosions to this mix is akin to throwing a gasoline party inside a greenhouse.The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), currently operating under leadership that views carbon emissions as a minor irritant, has remained predictably sanguine. Activists warn that the massive release of fine particulate matter (PM2. 5), barium, copper, and strontium will spike air toxicity levels to “hazardous” within minutes of the grand finale, but no one in the administration is particularly exercised about it. In the Trump universe, if the air gets a little smoky, or the thermometers threaten to melt, it is simply proof that America is generating more energy than anyone else.The irony is especially striking because Trump has made little secret of his disdain for global warming. Since returning to office, his administration has continued dismantling climate initiatives, encouraged expanded fossil-fuel production, rolled back emissions rules and argued that regulations unnecessarily burden economic growth. To supporters, who accuse critics of “pissing on the parade,” the July 4 spectacle represents unapologetic American confidence. To progressives, it’s like celebrating conservation by setting a national park on fire.Adding to the controversy is the cost. According to internal documents first reported by The Washington Post, the federal government is spending about $1.6 million on this year’s fireworks display, more than five times the roughly $270,000 typically spent on Washington’s Independence Day fireworks. While the money is chump change compared to what is being splurged to beautify Washington DC, the celebration has been designated a National Special Security Event, bringing thousands of National Guard troops, federal agents, extensive road closures and elaborate screening procedures into downtown Washington. For many residents, the biggest challenge may not be finding a good viewing spot but simply surviving the combination of traffic jams, heat advisories and airport-style security queues before the first rocket ever leaves the ground.Then comes another intriguing global twist. If Washington succeeds in setting a world record for the largest fireworks display ever staged — under a president who has spent years imposing tariffs on Chinese imports while urging Americans to “buy American” — there is a fair chance that many of those thunderous red, white and blue explosions celebrating American independence will have begun their journey in Chinese factories. For one glorious evening, the loudest sound in Washington may be the unmistakable boom of patriotism, powered, at least in part, by imports from the country America now regards as its principal strategic rival.
