Although burning joss paper and joss sticks are ritual ways to express our respects to deities and ancestors, following the progress of time and dense residential environment nowadays, suspended particulate matters can be produced therefrom and affect the health of worshipers and surrounding citizens. With the implementation of religious ritual reduction policy, it is our expectation that people’s concept and custom of burning joss paper will gradually change to make traditional rituals eco-friendly. We hope that we will do our greatest efforts to protect earth.
To support Environmental Protection Administration’s (EPA) policy of centralizing the burning of joss paper, Hualien County has, up to the end of September, managed to double the amount of centralized burning of joss paper comparing with last year (2018) with the efforts of Hualien County Environmental Protection Bureau and supports of local citizens. This has reduced amount of air pollutants PM2.5 and PM10 by 0.16t and 0.12t respectively. Nevertheless, the higher amount implies a bigger pollution to the environment. Therefore, although this result tells the big support of local temples and citizens to the centralized burning policy, it also implies a room for citizens to make a further improvement on this traditional custom.
To reduce air-pollution caused by the burning of joss paper, Environmental Protection Bureau held “Advanced Eco-Friendly Joss paper Reduction Policy for Hualien County”, which was open to members of countywide temples and local citizens, at the international conference hall of Hualien Shengan Temple at 2pm on the 29^th. Wu Dong-Ming, the former Chairperson of Shengan, was invited to explain how temples can make traditional religious rituals even more eco-friendly. By holding this session, it is our expectation that countywide temples and local citizens to better understand “all types of joss paper burning reduction actions” and contribute to our living environment. It is our expectation that we will, hand-in-hand, efficiently improve our air quality and build a clean homeland.
Director of Hualien County Environmental Protection Bureau Jao Chong expressed that, although the burning joss paper was a must-have sacrifice offering ritual, it was one of our targets to reach a balance between traditional beliefs and environmental protection measures due to the rising of environmental awareness of the society. Apart from “centralized burning of joss paper”, “big-value joss paper”, “online sacrifice offering” and “replacing the money with rice and efforts”, it is also suggested to replace the burning of joss paper and joss sticks with “eco-friendly lantern”. Not only offers the eco-friendly lantern food to fish, but also the remaining parts thereof can be totally decomposed and return all the materials to the earth. It is therefore a good way to show our respects to deities and ancestors and to treat our environment friendly. We invite all of you to guard Hualien and to keep its good fresh air hand-in-hand!