Articles by Grist staff

China will maintain one-child policy

Recent speculation that China was rethinking its one-child-per-family policy has been refuted by the country’s top population official, who says the family planning policy will not be altered for at least another decade.

Solar-panel manufacturers dumping toxic waste in China

Solar panels may look bright and shiny, but they have a dark underbelly: production of polysilicon for panels gives off a highly toxic byproduct called silicon tetrachloride. In China, where factories are rushing to alleviate a polysilicon shortage that’s cramping the global solar-panel industry, the bubbly white liquid is often just dumped in nearby villages. […]

Queen Elizabeth II encourages environmental protection

In her annual Commonwealth Day speech on Monday, Queen Elizabeth II had unusually pointed words regarding environmental protection. “The impact of pollution falls unequally,” she said. “It is often those who pollute the least — notably in the world’s least-developed nations — who are closest to the razor’s edge and most affected by the impact […]

Pollution is on Vatican’s updated list of mortal sins

The Vatican has put a modern twist on the seven deadly sins, announcing a list of “social sins” — including pollution and genetic manipulation. (And just when we had successfully rid ourselves of lust, gluttony, avarice, sloth, anger, envy, and pride.) The nature of sin itself has changed, says Monsignor Gianfranco Girotti, head of the […]