LOS ANGELES (AFP) - The drought-plagued city of Los Angeles announced a fireworks buy-back programme would be held on Wednesday (June 30) ahead of the United States July 4 holiday, hoping to rein in the explosives' illegal use in a set-up similar to gun buy-back programmes.

The initiative will make it possible to anonymously hand in fireworks - whose sale and use are banned in the city - to the police in exchange for baseball tickets and other gifts.

The majority of California is under extreme drought conditions, according to the US Drought Monitor, creating parched vegetation and conditions ripe for wildfires.

"Last year with the pandemic and the necessity of cancelling public-sanctioned fireworks shows, we saw a 72 per cent increase in calls" concerning illegal fireworks, said Los Angeles Police Department chief Michel Moore.

In total, more than 6,000 calls were received and more than four tons of fireworks were seized, he said.

The buy-back programme is targeting the San Fernando Valley, north of Los Angeles, in particular, an arid area susceptible to fires.

In addition to increased risk of fire and injury, fireworks launched by individuals also aggravate air pollution. According to air quality control authorities, the concentration of fine particles in the air on the night of July 4 last year was 70 per cent higher than in previous years.

Chief Moore warned that the police would act against retailers and manufacturers who sell the products illegally.

Last week the Los Angeles city attorney ordered major Internet platforms - including Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist - to remove posts selling fireworks within Los Angeles or face legal action.

The city of Pomona, east of Los Angeles, is offering a US$500 (S$672) reward for information leading to the arrest of people selling or storing fireworks illegally.

In neighbouring Ontario, two people died last March when a large stock of fireworks exploded in the house they were in.