So, should China be allowed to poison its own people and land for the sake of Capitalism, the way other countries did during the rise of industrialization?  If you think that this is an overstatement, please read the rest of Ms. Cha's article.  The outside world has little influence over internal affairs in China, but we should use what influence we do have: while developed nations still have much work to do in environmental areas, and must remain vigilant against backsliding, it is a tragedy for the Chinese people that their country is unwilling to learn much from the mistakes, including serious disasters, of more-industrialized nations.

In the meantime, there is new solar panel technology that doesn't require polysilicon, for example, "solar paint" developed by Nanosolar and “solar ink” recently described by Konarka. Nanosolar’s solar technology is reportedly more efficient than coal at generating electricity.  We can hope that these new technologies will continue to make inroads into the marketplace and will drive the construction of greener manufacturing facilities.  Given the growing demand for green electricity from solar power, such advances can’t come soon enough.

*See this link for a PDF file on Lifecycle Assessment of Crystalline Photovoltaics by Niels Jungbluth (note this links to a PDF!); for more background on polysilicon fabrication and related processes, see The Handbook of Silicon Semiconductor Technology, W. C. O’Mara, R. B. Herring, L. P Hunt eds., Pub.: William Andrew, Inc. (Noyes Data Corporation/Noyes Publications), 1990, 795pp, Chapter 2, “Polysilicon Preparation” by L. C. Rogers, p 33ff.  Also see Wacker Polysilicon, the History of the Future, available as a 13-page PDF or as a (less readable) web page.