Though cheerful additions to birthday parties, graduations and the like, balloons pose a dire threat to birds, sea turtles and other animals that mistake them for food after they're released.

"We're not banning the use of balloons on beaches," she said. "We are banning the release of balloons and sky lanterns on beaches. They have proven to be detrimental to marine life and the environment. Our goal was to become more environmentally aware. There are other cities who have done this and we thought Palm Beach should be on that bandwagon,"  explained Councilwoman Danielle Moore for Palm Beach daily news.

Diane Buhler, leader of Friends of Palm Beach, a volunteer group that cleans up waste from town beaches, said she has picked up as many as 14 balloons from the shore in one day.

"For every one picked up, the numbers of those not picked up, and out there potentially causing harm, are tenfold," she said. "I am all for a ban that hopefully starts people thinking about how they can change habits that harm the environment."