China, one of the world’s leading economies expected to overtake the United States of America, has faced countless environmental challenges resulting from the ruthless development and advancement of technology and power in the country. The pollution and increased dependency on traditional resources such as coal have led to a significant decrease in quality of life of the people of China. “That we have children coming into this world already polluted, at the same time we don't know what the effects of that pollution will be on their mental and physical development, is both bad policy and immorally wrong.” (Louise Slaughter, 2013). China’s voracious power needs and an overreliance on coal has forced some controversial decisions to be made, with such projects as the Three Gorges Dam forcing 1.4 million people to be relocated, geographical and ecological sites to be flooded, and significant ecological changes in the area in exchange for clean energy to power 10% of China’s needs and lower its dependency on coal. Given the government’s goal of generating 15% of the nation’s electricity from non-fossil fuel by 2020, China isn’t planning to slow down anytime soon, with preparation already beginning to build thirteen dams along the Nu river despite backlash from environmentalists
China, one of the world’s leading economies expected to overtake the United States of America, has faced countless environmental challenges resulting from the ruthless development and advancement of technology and power in the country. The pollution and increased dependency on traditional resources such as coal have led to a significant decrease in quality of life of the people of China. “That we have children coming into this world already polluted, at the same time we don't know what the effects of that pollution will be on their mental and physical development, is both bad policy and immorally wrong.” (Louise Slaughter, 2013). China’s voracious power needs and an overreliance on coal has forced some controversial decisions to be made, with such projects as the Three Gorges Dam forcing 1.4 million people to be relocated, geographical and ecological sites to be flooded, and significant ecological changes in the area in exchange for clean energy to power 10% of China’s needs and lower its dependency on coal. Given the government’s goal of generating 15% of the nation’s electricity from non-fossil fuel by 2020, China isn’t planning to slow down anytime soon, with preparation already beginning to build thirteen dams along the Nu river despite backlash from environmentalists