Possessing just 1/3 of the planet's reserves, China produces 90% of world rare earth supply, as...

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Tom Au Comments (6708)
 
There's no reason why China should bear the "whole" environmental burden for everyone else.

Westerners need to realize that there is an environmental price to be paid for industrial prosperity.
5 Apr 2011, 10:31 AM Reply Like

spald_fr Comments (2466)
 
[A change in attitudes towards the environment in China likely means this era is over. ]

If ever there was a market for carbon credits, China is an exchange unto itself.
5 Apr 2011, 10:33 AM Reply Like

Windsun33 Comments (3924)
 
China's environmental destruction is far worse than what almost any other country did before they started backtracking (or in some cases backed up even beyond the starting gate).

And the most ironic thing about it is that the vast majority of the rush for the rare earths is driven by "green" technology.
5 Apr 2011, 11:00 AM Reply Like

Duude Comments (3274)
 
The environmental aspect was only one reason The other was they were undercutting most of the rest of the world in cost to extract through lower wages. I think China had at one time thought it would be grand to control the whole market but has since come to realize it wasn't a good idea at all. China would eventually run out of rare earth metals resulting in other mines reopening and China back at the doorstep of those they'd been gouging for years.
5 Apr 2011, 11:14 AM Reply Like