據報道，黑龍江省哈爾濱市15日發布了關于禁止生產經營焚燒冥紙冥幣等封建迷信喪葬用品有關事宜的通告，禁止任何單位和個人生產、經營、焚燒冥幣和紙人、紙馬等迷信殯葬用品。該市相關負責人表示，“防治空氣污染是政府采取這一禁令的原因之一”。

A city in northeastern China has taken aim at a thousand-year-old Chinese custom of burning joss paper to provide for the dead.

給死者燒紙錢是中國數千年的習俗，中國東北的一座城市盯上了這一習俗。

The paper, also known as ghost money, is set alight during funerals and other ceremonies, and is intended to symbolize currency for the deceased person in the afterlife. But the municipal government of Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province, said Wednesday that it is a "feudal superstition" that is causing air pollution.

紙錢，也稱冥幣，是葬禮和其他祭拜儀式上用來焚燒的一種紙張，代表著黃泉路上死者使用的貨幣。但黑龍江省省會城市哈爾濱市政府15日表示，焚燒紙錢是一種導致空氣污染的“封建迷信”。

In a statement on its website, the government banned the burning, production, and selling of joss paper for the 9.6 million people who live in the city and its surrounding rural areas. The ban will "eradicate bad funeral practices, advocate civilized ancestor worship, and purify the urban environment," the statement said.

哈爾濱市政府在其官網發聲明稱，政府禁止居住在市區及周邊農村地區的960萬居民燃燒、生產和銷售紙錢。該禁令將“根絕不良殯葬習俗、倡導文明祭祖、凈化城市環境”。

Any individuals caught burning joss paper will receive fines of at least 200 yuan ($29), and those caught producing or selling the paper will be fined 500 yuan or more. The ban comes just three weeks ahead of the traditional Tomb-Sweeping Festival holiday, when many Chinese visit the graves of their forbears and perform rituals such as burning joss paper.

焚燒紙錢的個人將被處以200元以上的罰款。生產或銷售紙錢將被處以500元以上罰款。禁令在清明節假期前3周出臺，許多中國人會在這一傳統節日期間拜謁祖先，并有燒紙錢的傳統。

"The prevention of atmospheric pollution is one of the factors that led to the government order," Yang Xiaodi, head of the environmental publicity, education, and information center of the Harbin Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau, told Sixth Tone. The burning of ghost money, which is commonly made of recycled yellow paper, creates very fine so-called PM 2.5 particles, according to Yang.

哈爾濱市環保局環境宣傳教育及資訊中心負責人楊曉迪 According to the city's air quality reports issued by the environment bureau, PM 2.5 particles, which are especially damaging because they can enter the lungs and bloodstream, are the primary air pollutant in Harbin during the winter. Compared to the same period of last year, the first two months of 2024 saw nine more days with heavy air pollution.

根據哈爾濱市環保局發布的城市空氣質量報告，PM2.5顆粒是該市冬季的主要空氣污染物。因為這種顆粒可以進入肺部和血液，所以對健康的損害尤其大。與去年同期相比，2024年1月和2月的重度污染天氣增加了9天。

"In the past four years, the environmental protection bureau has been continuously advocating civilized funerals and ancestor worship with alternatives to [burning] joss paper, such as [placing] flowers," Yang said. "The burning of joss paper is a tradition, but whether today's society inherits it should be up to the considerations of today's people."

“在過去4年里，環保局一直在倡導文明殯葬，用獻花等方式替代燒紙錢的祭奠習俗。燒紙錢是一種傳統，當今社會是否應該繼承這一傳統應該取決于當代人的考量。”

Huang Wenfang, an associate professor with the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering at Fudan University in Shanghai, told Sixth Tone that, as far as she is aware, it has not yet been scientifically researched whether the burning of joss paper contributes to air pollution in any meaningful way.

上海復旦大學環境科學與工程系副教授黃文芳 Cities in northern China, including Harbin, are more likely to suffer from air pollution caused by PM 2.5 particles during the winter because coal is the main fuel used for central heating. In addition, Harbin is an industrial center and the biggest city in Heilongjiang, with about a quarter of the province's population living within the city's administrative limits.

哈爾濱等中國北方城市在冬季更容易發生PM2.5顆粒造成的空氣污染，這是因為用于集中供暖的主要燃料是煤。此外，哈爾濱是黑龍江省的工業中心及最大城市，該省約1/4的人口居住在哈爾濱市管轄范圍內。

The government should control rather than ban the burning of joss paper, said Tian Zhaoyuan, deputy dean of the School of Social Development at East China Normal University, also in Shanghai.

上海華東師范大學社會發展學院副院長田兆元稱，政府應該控制而不是禁止焚燒紙錢。

The act is a spiritual medium through which Chinese people communicate with their ancestors, Tian added. "The decision for a compulsory ban will likely be a problem," he added, "and damage cultural traditions."

燒紙錢的習俗是中國人與祖先進行精神交流的寄托。田朝元表示，“強制禁止很可能會成為問題，且破壞文化傳統”。

據報道，黑龍江省哈爾濱市15日發布了關于禁止生產經營焚燒冥紙冥幣等封建迷信喪葬用品有關事宜的通告，禁止任何單位和個人生產、經營、焚燒冥幣和紙人、紙馬等迷信殯葬用品。該市相關負責人表示，“防治空氣污染是政府采取這一禁令的原因之一”。

A city in northeastern China has taken aim at a thousand-year-old Chinese custom of burning joss paper to provide for the dead.

給死者燒紙錢是中國數千年的習俗，中國東北的一座城市盯上了這一習俗。

The paper, also known as ghost money, is set alight during funerals and other ceremonies, and is intended to symbolize currency for the deceased person in the afterlife. But the municipal government of Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province, said Wednesday that it is a "feudal superstition" that is causing air pollution.

紙錢，也稱冥幣，是葬禮和其他祭拜儀式上用來焚燒的一種紙張，代表著黃泉路上死者使用的貨幣。但黑龍江省省會城市哈爾濱市政府15日表示，焚燒紙錢是一種導致空氣污染的“封建迷信”。

In a statement on its website, the government banned the burning, production, and selling of joss paper for the 9.6 million people who live in the city and its surrounding rural areas. The ban will "eradicate bad funeral practices, advocate civilized ancestor worship, and purify the urban environment," the statement said.

哈爾濱市政府在其官網發聲明稱，政府禁止居住在市區及周邊農村地區的960萬居民燃燒、生產和銷售紙錢。該禁令將“根絕不良殯葬習俗、倡導文明祭祖、凈化城市環境”。

Any individuals caught burning joss paper will receive fines of at least 200 yuan ($29), and those caught producing or selling the paper will be fined 500 yuan or more. The ban comes just three weeks ahead of the traditional Tomb-Sweeping Festival holiday, when many Chinese visit the graves of their forbears and perform rituals such as burning joss paper.

焚燒紙錢的個人將被處以200元以上的罰款。生產或銷售紙錢將被處以500元以上罰款。禁令在清明節假期前3周出臺，許多中國人會在這一傳統節日期間拜謁祖先，并有燒紙錢的傳統。

"The prevention of atmospheric pollution is one of the factors that led to the government order," Yang Xiaodi, head of the environmental publicity, education, and information center of the Harbin Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau, told Sixth Tone. The burning of ghost money, which is commonly made of recycled yellow paper, creates very fine so-called PM 2.5 particles, according to Yang.

哈爾濱市環保局環境宣傳教育及資訊中心負責人楊曉迪 According to the city's air quality reports issued by the environment bureau, PM 2.5 particles, which are especially damaging because they can enter the lungs and bloodstream, are the primary air pollutant in Harbin during the winter. Compared to the same period of last year, the first two months of 2024 saw nine more days with heavy air pollution.

根據哈爾濱市環保局發布的城市空氣質量報告，PM2.5顆粒是該市冬季的主要空氣污染物。因為這種顆粒可以進入肺部和血液，所以對健康的損害尤其大。與去年同期相比，2024年1月和2月的重度污染天氣增加了9天。

"In the past four years, the environmental protection bureau has been continuously advocating civilized funerals and ancestor worship with alternatives to [burning] joss paper, such as [placing] flowers," Yang said. "The burning of joss paper is a tradition, but whether today's society inherits it should be up to the considerations of today's people."

“在過去4年里，環保局一直在倡導文明殯葬，用獻花等方式替代燒紙錢的祭奠習俗。燒紙錢是一種傳統，當今社會是否應該繼承這一傳統應該取決于當代人的考量。”

Huang Wenfang, an associate professor with the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering at Fudan University in Shanghai, told Sixth Tone that, as far as she is aware, it has not yet been scientifically researched whether the burning of joss paper contributes to air pollution in any meaningful way.

上海復旦大學環境科學與工程系副教授黃文芳 Cities in northern China, including Harbin, are more likely to suffer from air pollution caused by PM 2.5 particles during the winter because coal is the main fuel used for central heating. In addition, Harbin is an industrial center and the biggest city in Heilongjiang, with about a quarter of the province's population living within the city's administrative limits.

哈爾濱等中國北方城市在冬季更容易發生PM2.5顆粒造成的空氣污染，這是因為用于集中供暖的主要燃料是煤。此外，哈爾濱是黑龍江省的工業中心及最大城市，該省約1/4的人口居住在哈爾濱市管轄范圍內。

The government should control rather than ban the burning of joss paper, said Tian Zhaoyuan, deputy dean of the School of Social Development at East China Normal University, also in Shanghai.

上海華東師范大學社會發展學院副院長田兆元稱，政府應該控制而不是禁止焚燒紙錢。

The act is a spiritual medium through which Chinese people communicate with their ancestors, Tian added. "The decision for a compulsory ban will likely be a problem," he added, "and damage cultural traditions."

燒紙錢的習俗是中國人與祖先進行精神交流的寄托。田朝元表示，“強制禁止很可能會成為問題，且破壞文化傳統”。