The City Council’s artful dodge of the fireworks issue has ended at last, and in a decisive vote Wednesday, Honolulu’s policymakers have taken a heartening first step toward reining in the abuse of what was once an enjoyable holiday indulgence, part of Hawaii culture. Acting Mayor Kirk Caldwell should sign Bill 34 or allow it to become law.

Yes, fireworks play is still part of the culture, which is why the Council settled, 7-2, on a compromise, a partial ban. After the next New Year’s Eve blowout, an adult will be able to buy up to only 5,000 firecrackers per $25 permit secured. Aerial fireworks have long been banned, but starting in 2011, every other type of item, from sparklers to fountaining and paperless novelty explosives, will be prohibited, too.

The hope is that curtailing the imports, both in volume and variety, will make it easier for law enforcement to crack down on the smuggling of contraband that inevitably occurs. It’s the aerial rockets that present the biggest safety threat, but sufferers from respiratory illness should reap the benefit of reduction in overall smokiness, an irritating byproduct of the current holiday conflagration.

The naysayers counter by projecting a decline in legitimate retailers, adding that black market suppliers will fill the void and render the regulation ineffective. Illicit supplies, brought in from counties that still allow their imports, surely will persist as a problem.

But it’s hard to imagine the black-market situation becoming any worse than it is now, with smugglers happily bagging a tidy profit through sales of illegal aerials mixed in with the shipments. In the months between now and July 4, the next large-scale celebration after New Year’s, law enforcement must refine its plans for intercepting the contraband along established pipelines, and the new ones that will start flowing.

Critics also say that Council action should have awaited the results of a statewide task-force study on the issue. That would be pointless. The state Legislature had its chance last session, as in previous sessions, to enact what would have been the most effective solution — a statewide ban — but lawmakers punted to the counties to deal with fireworks control. If anything, the findings of the task force would be informed by the Oahu experience following the enactment of the new ordinance.

Nobody can be sure about the success of the partial ban or what the collateral effects will be. There’s no limit on the number of permits each adult can get, so the city should gear up for heavier traffic in its permit office. At least there’s the potential for a revenue boost, which should help underwrite heightened enforcement efforts.

There are many who will mourn when New Year’s Eve becomes a faint shadow of the current bombardment levels. Many kamaaina harbor fond memories from childhood of family fireworks celebrations.

But Honolulu has changed. As a practical matter, the current law is unenforceable, and the results have brought pain to many. The Honolulu Emergency Services Department tallied four years of statistics, starting in June 2006. Each fireworks season in this period caused an average of 50 injuries to children under 16 — more than they suffered in an average month from car accidents, assaults, poisonings or pedestrian collisions.

We could all afford fewer memories like that. Let’s give this partial ban a chance.