Collaboration between the Confucian Chaoping Temple in Nantou County’s Puli Township (埔里) and Nantou-based National Chi Nan University has revealed that burning incense and joss paper, as well as setting off fireworks, is a large contributor to the amount of airborne particulate matter measuring 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5) in the township.
To provide the public with better monitoring of PM2.5 pollution in the township — which has significant PM2.5 pollution, especially in fall and winter — Day Rong-fuh (戴榮賦), a professor at the university’s Department of Information Management, spent the past two years researching and manufacturing miniature monitoring devices, which he has persuaded local temples to install.
The devices not only measure PM2.5 density in their surroundings, but also temperature, humidity and luminance, Day said, adding that they would be installed at 38 locations in the county.
The temple on Thursday installed two of the devices, which, with only 10 wands of incense in a burner, showed that PM2.5 emissions had reached the “purple” level.
The Environmental Protection Administration uses a four-color system to indicate PM2.5 concentrations, with “purple” being the most severe, corresponding to PM2.5 concentrations in excess of 71 micrograms per cubic meter.
Temple officials said one monitor was placed next to incense burners, where it signaled “yellow” — about 36 micrograms per cubic meter — with no wind, adding that when the wind blew incense smoke directly at the monitor, it immediately spiked to “purple.”
The device’s purpose is to remind temple officials and worshipers of the level of pollution, allowing them to make adjustments accordingly, Day said, adding that possible solutions include not using incense, or giving only one stick of incense to each group of visitors as a “token tribute.”
Chang Li-ya (張力亞), of the university’s General Education Center, said the monitors would help quantify air pollution.
At an event at Puli’s Dimu Temple, one monitor reported a spike of 400 to 500 micrograms per cubic meter when multiple worshipers lit wands of incense at the same time, Chang said, adding that at a “Bombing of Master Handan” event at Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung’s Dajia District (大甲), one monitor reported PM2.5 concentrations of 1,900 micrograms per cubic meter.
The Chaoping Temple’s management committee said that it has employed several methods to cut down on air pollution, such as periodically taking out incense handles, offering only one stick of incense to worshipers, stopping the practice of burning joss paper and turning on fans to help air circulation during events.
One worshiper, surnamed Lin (林), said that environmental protection is important, adding that if burning incense causes high levels of PM2.5 pollution, residents would vote to stop burning incense and just make the motions with their hands.
The deities will not care if we do not burn incense, as long as we are sincere, Lin said.
However, another worshiper, surnamed Kuo (郭), said that while temples could burn less incense, an incense wand is required to convey the wishes of mortals to deities.
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