The Left despises capitalism, not just because its followers view capitalism as unequal and unfair, but because they view capitalism as dangerous to the environment. But due to various laws and regulations (as well as self imposed policies within the private sector), capitalist societies have become environmentally friendly.
And what about these socialist/communist nations and their environmental policies? It turns out such nations have adopted policies that were disastrous to the environment.
One particular example would be the Aral Sea located between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. When both nations were part of the Soviet Union, the Aral Sea’s rivers to were diverted so that the collectivized state farms could be irrigated. As a result, the Aral Sea was greatly reduced in size- in fact, it would split into three separate lakes, one of which later dried up, while the other two were greatly reduced in size. In addition, these two remaining lakes have been heavily polluted by means of runoff from nearby agricultural projects (i.e. pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers). And to make matters worse, once the Aral Sea began drying up, various toxins in the sediment turned to dust and due to the wind ended up throughout the land and into people’s lungs.
Another example would be China’s Three Gorges Dam. The building of such a dam has interrupted the flow of water, but also prevents the dispersal of pollutants that the Chinese Government emptied into the Yangtze River, thus resulting in not only pollution, but also soil erosion, mudslides, riverbanks collapsing, and aquatic life being devastated.
Yet another example is the oil company Pemex, with a majority of its shares owned by the Mexican Government. In 1979, an explosion at one of its wells near the Gulf of Mexico resulted in the largest oil spill in history (thus much worse than the BP disaster of 2010). In 1984 and 1992, explosions occurred at Pemex facilities, resulting in over 700 people being killed. In 2007, terrorists blew up a few unguarded pipelines, and during that same year, a Pemex-operated oil rig collided with a drilling platform, resulting in twenty-two deaths. Meanwhile, Pemex dumped chemicals into the Coatzacoalcos River, wiping out most of the fish.
The reason such environmental disasters took place is because the projects were devised by central planners, who did not answer to anyone- unlike any corporation who would be fined and forced to clean up any ecological mess they create.
So, the next time some you hear some environmentalist criticizing capitalism, feel free to tell them about the poor ecological record of socialism (and communism).
Source: Clash Daily
