Chinese lawmakers recently entered a fierce online debate on whether fireworks should be used to celebrate the Lunar New year this February. They said a total ban on fireworks in the country credited with inventing the noisemakers would be hard to enforce.
中国立法者最近就是否应该在今年2月使用烟花爆竹来庆祝农历新年展开了一场激烈的网络辩论。他们表示，在创造了这种噪音制造器的国家全面禁止烟花爆竹将很难执行。
Lawmakers said air pollution prevention and fire safety laws have led to “differences in understanding” of the ban on fireworks. However, it was never a total ban.
立法者们表示，空气污染预防和消防安全法律导致对烟花禁令的“理解差异”。然而，这从未是完全的禁令。
In 2017, official data showed 444 cities had banned fireworks. Since then, some of the cities have loosened the bans. They permit fireworks at certain times of the year and at special places.
2017年，官方数据显示444个城市已经禁止燃放烟花。从那时起，一些城市已经放宽了禁令。他们允许在一年的特定时间和特定地点燃放烟花。
This month, however, many counties made announcements banning fireworks, restarting discussion on the ban.
然而，本月许多县宣布禁止燃放烟花，重新引发了关于禁令的讨论。
“We’ve the right to fireworks,” wrote a user of Weibo, a popular Chinese online discussion service.
一位微博用户写道：“我们有放烟火的权利。”微博是一种流行的中国在线讨论服务。
Chinese folklore says the earliest fireworks were invented 2,000 years ago to drive away the “nian.” The nian, the story goes, was a monster that hunted people and animals before the Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival.
中国民间传说称，最早的烟花是在2000年前发明的，用来驱赶”年”。据传故事，年是一种在农历新年或春节前追捕人和动物的怪兽。
Since then, fireworks came to be used to celebrate other events. This January, after three years of COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, some people ignored bans – and officials – and set off firecrackers.
从那以后，烟花开始被用来庆祝其他活动。今年一月，在三年的 COVID-19 限制解除后，一些人无视禁令和官方的规定，放鞭炮。
Some Chinese say the fireworks bans were necessary to protect the environment.
一些中国人表示，燃放烟花爆竹的禁令对保护环境是必要的。
An online opinion study by the official Beijing Youth Daily found that over 80 percent of people supported fireworks during Spring Festival. The festival is the most important holiday on the Chinese calendar.
根据北京青年报官方进行的一项在线调查显示，超过80%的人支持在春节期间燃放烟花爆竹。春节是中国日历上最重要的节日。
Some also said the ban was ironic after the United Nations recently named the Spring Festival an official holiday, a move supported by Chinese officials.
一些人也表示，禁令在联合国最近将春节列为官方节假日后是具有讽刺意味的，这一举措得到了中国官员的支持。
“The Spring Festival belongs to the world, but China’s is almost gone,” wrote another Weibo user.
另一位微博用户写道：“春节属于全世界，但中国的已经快没了。”
Southern Hunan province is a worldwide supplier of fireworks. Its exports totaled $579 million from January to November, state media reported. That number is far greater than domestic sales.
据官方媒体报道，湖南省南部是全球烟花供应商，从1月到11月，其出口总额达到5.79亿美元。这个数字远远超过国内销售量。
I’m Dan Novak.
我是丹·诺瓦克。
Dan Novak adapted this Reuters report for VOA Learning English.
丹·诺瓦克（Dan Novak）适应了路透社的这篇报道，并为VOA Learning English进行了适应。
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Words in This Story
本故事中的词语
county –n. the government for an area bigger than a city but smaller than a state or province which deals with local matters
县 – 名词. 管辖比城市大但小于州或省的地区的政府，负责处理当地事务。
folklore –n. traditional customs, stories and beliefs
民俗 – 名词，指传统习俗、故事和信仰
calendar –n. a system for organizing days, weeks, months and years
日历 – 名词。用于组织天数、星期、月份和年份的系统。
ironic — adj. something that is funny in a way because it seems to be the opposite of how something should be
讽刺的 – 形容词。指的是某件事以一种有趣的方式出人意料，因为它似乎与应该的方式相反。
评烟花禁令：传统文化要保护，环保也要重视
农历新年临近，中国再次掀起了一场关于烟花禁令的讨论。支持禁令的一方认为，烟花爆竹会造成空气污染和火灾隐患，有必要进行严格管控。反对禁令的一方则认为，烟花爆竹是春节的重要组成部分，是中华民族传统文化的重要载体，应该予以保护。
烟花禁令的利弊都有
烟花爆竹确实会产生一定的污染和安全隐患。根据中国环保部的数据，燃放烟花爆竹产生的烟尘、二氧化硫、氮氧化物等污染物，会对空气质量造成影响。此外，烟花爆竹引发的火灾也时有发生。
不过，烟花爆竹也是春节的重要组成部分。它不仅可以烘托节日气氛，还具有驱邪避害、祈福迎祥的寓意。在许多中国人眼中，烟花爆竹是春节不可或缺的元素。
如何平衡传统文化与环保
烟花禁令是一项复杂的社会问题，既有传统文化保护的考量，也有环保安全的考虑。如何在两者之间找到平衡，是一个需要认真思考的问题。
我认为，可以从以下几个方面来解决这个问题：
首先，要加强对烟花爆竹的安全监管。要严格执行烟花爆竹安全管理规定，加大对违法违规行为的打击力度。
其次，要开发环保型烟花爆竹。要鼓励烟花生产企业研发和生产环保型烟花爆竹，减少污染物排放。
再次，要普及烟花爆竹安全知识。要通过多种形式，向公众宣传烟花爆竹安全知识，提高公众的安全意识。
我相信，在政府和社会各界的共同努力下，一定能够找到平衡传统文化与环保的办法，让烟花爆竹既能成为春节的靓丽风景，又能保护环境安全。