The Economics of Mercury Toxicity

While the United States was one of the largest culprits when it came to global mercury pollution, up and coming industrial countries, China and India, are now the main antagonists. The U.S. has cut their mercury emissions down by 65 percent in the last decade or two by adhering to the Clean Air Act and other EPA recommendations, China and India have ramped up their production of the main sources for mercury pollution: coal fired power plants, boilers, incinerators, steel and cement production. It is booming business, baby, and developing countries are doing what they need to do to get skin in the global market. What better way then to mimic the practices used by the world economic powers during their Industrial Revolution. Coal productions is plenty and cheap. If we can get developing countries to mine mercury and produce all of the raw materials we in the “first” world need for our essential and non-necessary products…why wouldn’t we? How would we even began to chide or guide these nations when our hands are coated with many layers of blood?