Is igniting fireworks a must for the festivity of Spring Festival? Many believe it is.

But many more disagree. They believe that excessive pollution and the potential for fire or injuries make it an increasingly unwelcome tradition.

A big fire sparked by fireworks almost destroyed the newly built Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Beijing on Monday evening, touching off a heated debate on whether the practice of celebrating Spring Festival with fireworks should be prohibited.

An online survey of more than 4,000 respondents by Beijing News shows that more than 60 percent support fireworks bans.

Apparently, more prefer to sacrifice the festival atmosphere fireworks create for a safer and cleaner environment.

Actually, fireworks were banned for almost a decade in many cities. But the ban was lifted three years ago simply because many ignored it and it became too hard to enforce. And it is also because fireworks are a tradition spanning hundreds of years. The issue does need second thought before a ban is imposed.

But given the greatly increased population density in many cities, big cities like Beijing in particular, the consequences of fireworks are potentially much more serious than they were decades ago.

Fireworks on Monday evening, the Lantern Festival and also the last day for fireworks, produced Beijing's worst air pollution in the past eight months. This is not only because the amount of fireworks ignited was much larger than before, but also because the greater density of high rises meant it took much more time than many years ago for the smoke to disperse.

The garbage from fireworks on Spring Festival eve alone was as much as 2,000 tons in Beijing. The papers and other resources wasted on fireworks are huge every year and so is the amount of garbage sanitation workers are required to cart out of cities.

The other problem lies with the manufacture of fireworks, which have become more and more powerful. A string used to have at most 200 firecrackers two or three decades ago but now the number of firecrackers can be as much as 10,000 on a single string.

Cities have much less open space but greater numbers of very powerful fireworks in just a couple of days are responsible for more pollution and garbage.

There is nothing wrong for many to love this tradition. But if the cost is too high for the environment, it is natural for us to take more responsible options.

At least, tighter control is needed to prevent manufacturers from producing excessively powerful fireworks.

(China Daily February 12, 2009)