Human lives vs economic growth: understanding environmental injustice through industrialization and peri-urbanization, using the case of cancer villages in Jiangsu Province, China

Abstract

Cancer village, also known as <i>aizhengcun</i> in Chinese, refers to the villages that show extensive high cancer rates. These villages tend to locate in peri-urban areas around cities, and this issue is more serious in east coast China compared with other regions. Cancer village is not only a public health issue caused by water pollution, but also a social justice issue whose root causes include income gap and the systemic inequality created by hukou system. This thesis uses the lens of environmental justice to show that cancer village is a form of environmental injustice caused by pollution and social stratification by using the case of Jiangsu Province, China. Empowerment of the vulnerable communities is considered as a critical solution to this issue.