Much of China’s polluting production has roots abroad, as its cheap labor, land, and lax regulations have attracted bounteous foreign investment. But plenty of China’s pollution is homegrown, coughed out by the coal-fired power plants that fuel the nation’s economic engine, the industries and infrastructure projects that keep the masses working, and the Toyotas and Buicks prized by the mushrooming middle class.
Since 2007, China has surpassed the United States as the leading greenhouse gas emitter, responsible for 27 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. And the late-coming neoliberal behemoth is currently offshoring emissions abroad through its controversial Belt and Road Initiative.
