This Well-Meaning Folk Tradition Is Ruining Chinese Ecosystems

The Buddhist practice of buying and releasing fish is environmentally detrimental.
This Well-Meaning Folk Tradition Is Ruining Chinese Ecosystems
Chinese residents release captive fish into Daming Lake. Sina Weibo
Juliet Song
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According to Chinese Buddhist folk tradition, the first day of the second month in the Chinese lunar calendar is a time when people participate in the practice of fangsheng, meaning animal release, by purchasing animals marked for slaughter and then letting them go into the wild.

A group releases fish into Daming Lake. (Sina Weibo)
A group releases fish into Daming Lake. Sina Weibo
Juliet Song
Juliet Song
Author
Juliet Song is an international correspondent exclusively covering China news for NTD. She primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus," covering U.S.-China relations, the Chinese regime's human rights abuses, and domestic unrest inside China.