19 September 2011
China’s Solar Factory Pollution Causes Riot
Posted by John Freeland
One reason American solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturers have had trouble staying profitable is price competition from China. China can build PVs cheaper because of reduced labor costs and lax environmental regulations.
Local residents in Haining have apparently had enough, forcing a factory to shut down. AFP reports:
China has ordered the closure of a solar panel factory in the east of the country after hundreds of local residents staged violent protests over pollution, authorities said Monday.
The closure of the plant, which manufactures solar panels for the US-listed company Jinko Solar, follows the shut-down of a chemical factory in northeastern China after some 12,000 residents took to the streets over pollution fears…
The protesters broke into the factory in Zhejiang province’s Haining city, ransacking offices and overturning vehicles before being forced back by police in a three-day protest that began on Thursday, according to state media reports.
They were demanding an explanation for the death of large numbers of fish in a nearby river, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Wouldn’t an international trade embargo on products manufactured this way make sense?
John Freeland earned a PhD in Soil Science (Pedology) at North Dakota State University and is a consultant working in the private sector. He has published soils research and taught at the high school and college levels. John is interested in wetlands, soil genesis, science communication, the intersection of art and science, and soil-water-landscape processes. John lives near the Ohio-Michigan border and plays bass in multiple music projects.
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Good luck getting that international embargo. Chinese plants are notorious for breaking what minimal laws are in place. An excellent example were the multiple melamine contaminated infant formula and powdered milk incidents, even AFTER two factory managers were executed over it.
That said, the Chinese people seem to be aware of the issues and are making it known to their government that they will not repeat the mistakes WE made in the past.
So, over the next generation, we can anticipate remarkable improvement.
Not because China will suddenly grow altruistic factory managers. But, because NO nation can survive when the majority of the populace are royally enraged over pollution and contamination.