The Environment - Research Paper Example

The Environment al Affiliation: The Environment Environmental Sociology is defined as the study of how the society interacts with the environment (Mehta, 2005). It focuses on the social factors that lead to environment problems and the social impacts of these problems (Mehta, 2005). This paper will analyze a current issue that affects the environment. It will discuss a news article posted in the Wall Street Journal. The article being discussed covers the story of a crackdown on water polluting industries in the China.

The news report titled “China Cracks Down on Water-Polluting Industries” is written by Te-ping Chen. It was written and posted in the wall street journal on April 17, 2015 (Chen, 2015). The article covers the concepts of environmental justice and water pollution. It discusses the adverse effects that the people in China are experiencing due to pollution of water by industries. The article also discusses the proposed solutions for controlling the crisis of water pollution.According to the article, China has planned to close down numerous small scale enterprises in order to clean up its water supply.

The industries to be closed include dyeing plants, oil refineries, and pesticide producers. The plan that has been developed by the state council of China is intended to improve the water quality by the year 2020.This shows that there is political involvement in solving this environmental problem. The plan is expected to ensure that 93% of water in the river basins is safe for consumption (Chen, 2015). The article reports that the water discharged into the China Rivers leads to pollution of water and death of people and animals.

Only 56% of Rivers have safe water, and over 60% of the groundwater has also been polluted (Chen, 2015). Pollution of the rivers by both industrial and agricultural activities has led to health problems among people in China. Moreover, it has led to water shortages in the northern part of the country.The country intends to shut down small industries since they do not have the required facilities to clean up their factory discharge. Closing Down the smaller industries and leaving the large ones indicates that the large factories are prioritized and regarded to be more important that the smaller ones.

The article also states that the smaller plants are easy to shut down. The program officer for the project said that the small industries will need a lot of funds and investments to implement the waste cleaning systems that are required. The report also noted that the shutdown exercise will lead to massive job loss, and thus the government was expecting to experience a drop in the economy. This relationship shows that the measure of controlling pollution can influence the economy. However, the government plans to create new investments that will absorb the people who will lose their jobs.

Chen Yongqing noted that besides the action being an environment conservation plan, the exercise was a significant business opportunity as wellIn this article, variables such as inequality and economy are evident. The close down activity is focused on the small industries and does not touch the large industries. This shows that there is inequality between the large industries and the smaller industries. It is perceived that the smaller industries are the major pollutants. The article also argues that the small industries do not have capacity to install waste cleaners.

This perception shows the depths of inequality in the China Society. The article discusses the negative economic effects of the exercise. It notes that the close down exercise will lead to unemployment and an economic fall. However, the government plans to star new industries that will absorb the people who will lose their jobs during the exercise. These variables affect the way the issue is reported. The reporter ensures that the positive effects of the close down of industries is noted. The report seeks to justify the close down of the small industries.

Therefore, it is evident that the report has an agenda of convincing the reader on the rightfulness of the measure taken to control water pollution.ReferencesChen, T. (2015, April 17). China Cracks Down on Water-Polluting Industries - WSJ. Retrieved from http://www.wsj.com/articles/china-cracks-down-on-water-polluting-industries-1429267822Mehta, M. D. (2005). Environmental sociology: Theory and practice. North York: Captus Press.