A disconcerting article in the Washington Post, Sunday, March 9, 2008, raises the alarm about polysilicon manufacturers cutting corners and polluting the environment that their product is designed to save.
The article visits a poor farming village that rejoiced upon hearing that a factory would be built in their neighbourhood, enabling them to finally catch up with the economic boom; the prospect of incomes rising from $200 a year to $200 a month must have been very tantalizing.
Alas, once the factory was up and running, it appears that the haste to produce exceeded the capacity or will to deal with a nasty by-product - silicon tetrachloride. According to the report, this by-product is very toxic and has led to crop failure and rising health complaints. Some concerned villagers have raised the issue with the local environmental authorities but claim to have been ignored.
I hope that this incident is an isolated one, and that the Chinese government will take quick action to ensure that manufacturers handle their waste responsibly. In developed nations, the processes are closely monitored, and producers have to recycle or scrub the waste, even though the result is that their price per ton of pure silicon is unable to compete with the Chinese prices.
China has been at the forefront of an enviable green revolution in the developing world. By sheer determination and hard work, the country has now attained a supreme position in the global PV market. Former competitors now place orders from China and are proud to be associated with Chines partners.
China can maintain the ambitious economic trajectory while also posing as a leader in responsible manufacturing. The green revolution cannot afford to be the target of environmental sceptics who, though they cannot tell us where we will be when the oil runs out, never ignore a chance to shoot down any new alternatives.
