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LIMA, Peru (AP) — Ecuador's government on Friday banned most fireworks in the Galapagos archipelago due to damage caused to the islands' wildlife from the sounds of explosions, including heart problems and nervous stress.
Officials announced the ban just days before New Year's celebrations that traditionally see fireworks exploding across Latin America.
Lorena Tapia is the president of the Government Council of Galapagos. She says on her official Twitter account that the new rule bars the entry, sale and distribution of any fireworks that cause noise on the archipelago's 13 main islands and at least 17 islets that lie about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) out in the Pacific.
The tweet adds: "This is a gift for Ecuador and the world."
Officials say luminous pyrotechnics that do not produce any sound will still be allowed.
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