Describe the consequences of globalization on air pollution in China’s main cities
The process of the world becoming more interconnected is called globalization. It has both positive and negative effects, just like any process that involves making economic decisions.
China’s economy, which is among the fastest-growing in the world, has suffered from numerous effects of globalization. Air pollution has significantly increased, which is one serious repercussion.
Describe the consequences of globalization on air pollution in China’s main cities in an interesting essay.
Overview
One study estimates that the notoriously deadly air pollution left behind by China’s export-oriented industrial boom, which is fueled primarily by burning coal, causes the deaths of 1.6 million people annually (4,400 per day), or 17% of all deaths in the nation. Another study determined that the severe air pollution had decreased life expectancy in China by an average of more than 2 years and by as much as 5.5 years in the country’s north, putting the total at two-thirds of all fatalities.
It’s interesting to note that several studies have attempted to estimate the total number of premature deaths caused by global trade and air pollution. One such study discovered that PM2.5 pollution, which is defined as particles with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less, was responsible for more than 64,800 premature deaths in places other than China in 2007, including more than 3,100 deaths in western Europe and the USA. Despite the offshoring of manufacturing and pollution, around 19,000 premature deaths related to domestically produced export-related pollution occur in the US each year, with 3,000 of those deaths being associated with goods going to China.
However, this is a lot less than what the Chinese are going through as a result of Western consumerism. The study found that “more than 108,600 premature deaths in China are linked to consumption in western Europe and the USA.” (Pollution from the manufacturing of products and services consumed in the US alone contributed to 102,000 premature deaths worldwide; consumption in Europe contributed to an additional 173,000 premature deaths.) Note that the expenditures of numerous other chronic ailments linked to air pollution are not included in the aforementioned estimate. Of course, the adverse effects on human health caused by China’s coal-driven industrial growth and export focus extend beyond air pollution.
