Chinese villagers protest pollution from solar panel factory.

[RandySF]

Hundreds of villagers in eastern China have been demonstrating against pollution they say is caused by a solar panel factory. Some protesters have stormed the compound and overturned vehicles.

The government of Haining city said Sunday that more than 500 villagers in the city in Zhejiang province gathered in front of the Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd. on Thursday demanding an explanation for the alleged pollution.

It says some protesters charged into the factory compound, overturned eight company vehicles and destroyed its offices. It says on Friday, protesters damaged four police vehicles.



http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/09/17/international/i201457D53.DTL#ixzz1YGzJv641

[MADem]

1. Well, ain't that ironic!

The whole idea behind the panels is to reduce pollution. What are they doing, running the plant on chunks of coal?

[Yo_Mama]

2. Solar panels are relatively toxic to manufacture

And Chinese factories are famous for just dumping waste.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/08/AR2008030802595.html

http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10142451-54.html

The failure to deal with the toxic compounds is one reason that Chinese solar panel manufacturers can produce their product so much more cheaply than Western companies.

[MADem]

3. Doesn't THAT suck!!!!

Ewwww.....

...Stopping between the cornfields and the primary school playground, the workers dumped buckets of bubbling white liquid onto the ground. Then they turned around and drove right back through the gates of their compound without a word.

This ritual has been going on almost every day for nine months, Li and other villagers said.

In China, a country buckling with the breakneck pace of its industrial growth, such stories of environmental pollution are not uncommon. But the Luoyang Zhonggui High-Technology Co., here in the central plains of Henan Province near the Yellow River, stands out for one reason: It's a green energy company, producing polysilicon destined for solar energy panels sold around the world. But the byproduct of polysilicon production -- silicon tetrachloride -- is a highly toxic substance that poses environmental hazards.

[Gregorian]

4. You get it.

We had discussions about this kind of thing in an advanced thermodynamics course back in the 80's. I don't think people realize just how into this fossil fuel thing we are. Much of the renewable energy generation infrastructure is going to require a great deal of it. We're fighting fire with fire until we get to a point where we're operating totally on renewable resources.

I personally don't think we're going to pull out of this without a massive death of most of what we take for granted. Like ice caps, pollinators, regulated climate...

It's a simple equation. How many, and what they're doing. It's very simple. But we refuse to look at half of that equation. And that is why we're headed for trouble.

I'm not saying the Chinese couldn't clean up their act. That's academic.

[AdHocSolver]

5. The reach of Wall Street colonialism ranges far and wide.

The Chinese people are suffering from corporate evil just as much as are the people of the U.S, Africa, and South America, in fact, the entire planet.

Fighting this evil of unnecessary pollution, enforced poverty, and destruction and waste of economic resources requires the assistance of people around the world. We are fighting to protect life on this planet. We have to work together.

[watrwefitinfor]

6. Kicking n/t

[PuffedMica]

7. The low cost we pay for Chinese goods does have a price elsewhere

The rampant materialism of the West and its thirst for inexpensive gadgets is taking a tremendous toll on the Earth in places like China and India. China has what could be described in the best of terms as lax enforcement of environmental laws. Of course American corporations turn a blind eye to conditions at the manufacturing sites as long as those cheap cell phones and flat screen TVs keep coming.

Rich corporations are hurting us financially by exporting jobs to places like China, but they are also killing the whole planet through their complete lack of environmental stewardship.