<p>Across Europe, as environmental laws tighten and public outrage mounts, ageing and polluting factories are being dismantled — not to be scrapped, but to be shipped halfway across the world. Their destination: India.</p>.<p>Here, under the banners of “technology transfer,” “Make in India”, and “industrial modernisation”, a new kind of pollution colonialism is unfolding. In short, Europe is cleaning up its skies and rivers by exporting its toxicity, while India is accepting these discarded machines as emblems of progress.</p>.<p>A story that has been simmering for years came into sharp focus with one seemingly innocuous deal: the relocation of chemical equipment from a shuttered Italian factory to a new home in Maharashtra. This was no ordinary transaction. It marked the resurrection of a poison Europe itself has declared too dangerous for human proximity — “forever chemicals.”</p>.<p>In 2018, Italy shut down one of its most notorious polluters: the Miteni PFAS plant in Vicenza, which had contaminated groundwater across the Veneto region and poisoned more than 350,000 people. The plant’s executives were convicted in 2024 for “environmental devastation.” PFAS — per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, better known as “forever chemicals” because they never degrade in nature — were its product line. Once in soil or water, PFAS persist for centuries, accumulating in the blood, liver, and tissues of humans and animals alike. They are linked to cancers, infertility, immune disorders, and developmental harm in children.</p>.<p>Italy, horrified by the health fallout after long protests by citizens, moved to phase out PFAS production. An Indian company, Laxmi Organic Industries, saw an opportunity. Through its subsidiary Viva Lifesciences, the company acquired Miteni’s decommissioned poison junk and shipped it to Lote Parashuram MIDC, an industrial estate bordering the fragile Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary. In 2023, Italy’s PFAS ghost came alive under Indian skies. The machinery that poisoned Italian families now operates near the villages and rivers of Maharashtra.</p>.<p>Italy’s story is not an isolated one. Across Europe, a slow exodus of dirty industrial infrastructure is underway. Dow Chemical’s Stade plant in Germany is dismantling two polymer trains producing polycarbonates — materials linked to toxic emissions and complex waste streams. These are being shipped to the Gujarat-based company Deepak’s facility in Dahej, where they will be reassembled and restarted by 2028.</p>.<p>Dow, the world’s largest chemical company, plans to close several major units across Europe under intense regulatory and community pressure: an ethylene cracker in Böhlen, chlor-alkali and vinyl assets in Schkopau, and a siloxanes plant in Barry, UK. British chemical giant INEOS is shutting chemical units in Rheinberg, and Saudi multinational SABIC is closing its Teesside olefins cracker in Redcar, in the northeast of England. These closures reflect a plain truth: Europe no longer wishes to bear the ecological and social cost of these polluting industries.</p>.<p>But these stories don’t end with shutdowns. These “stranded assets” are being sold off, piece by piece, to eager buyers in India’s chemical heartlands — Dahej, Mangaluru, Visakhapatnam, Panipat, Paradeep. The logic is chillingly simple: what is too dirty for Düsseldorf is good enough for Dahej.</p>.<p>Pollution colonialism</p>.<p>Officials and investors call this economic growth, but beneath this rhetoric lies a dangerous reality: India is trading its environmental and public health future for short-term industrial gains. Europe’s stringent environmental norms and carbon pricing make the continued operation of such plants uneconomical. In contrast, India’s lax regulatory oversight, weak enforcement, and cheaper land and labour create a haven for pollution arbitrage. The relocation of used reactors, distillation columns, and polymer trains — often described as “brownfield upgrades” — is cloaked in bureaucratic language. The essence, however, remains stark: Europe exports its pollution; India imports its peril.</p>.<p>Among all chemical threats, PFAS stand apart for their permanence and potency. These chemicals are used in non-stick cookware, waterproof fabrics, food packaging, and firefighting foams. Their carbon-fluorine bonds are among the strongest in chemistry, resisting natural degradation. PFAS is now found in rainwater, Arctic snow, and the blood of 97% of humans on Earth.</p>.<p>Once released, they do not disappear — they accumulate and end up in breastmilk and in blood, liver and brain. The production and use of PFAS in India is especially alarming because these chemicals are nearly impossible to contain. Waste discharges from the factories and the aftereffects of their widespread use lead them to the water tables and crop fields. The health impacts can persist for generations and are catastrophic.</p>.<p>By permitting the machinery that devastated Veneto to restart production in Maharashtra, India risks repeating one of Europe’s greatest environmental scandals — this time in a larger, more densely populated area.</p>.<p>This isn’t just about one plant or one industry. It’s about the future we are building. Coastal chemical hubs like Dahej, Paradeep, and Mangaluru are dangerously close to ecologically sensitive zones — estuaries, mangroves, and agricultural lands that sustain millions. If PFAS and other hazardous substances enter our rivers or aquifers, no clean-up technology in the world can reverse the damage. We risk contaminating the food chain, livestock, and groundwater — the invisible arteries of life itself.</p>.<p>Let’s not forget: India is already grappling with rising cancer clusters near industrial zones, poisoned rivers like the Periyar and Yamuna, and declining soil fertility. Adding Europe’s chemical rejects to this toxic mix is not development; it is self-destruction masquerading as progress.</p>.<p><em>(The writer is an environmentalist and the author of Heavy Metal and Vaccine Nation)</em></p><p><em>Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.</em></p>
<p>Across Europe, as environmental laws tighten and public outrage mounts, ageing and polluting factories are being dismantled — not to be scrapped, but to be shipped halfway across the world. Their destination: India.</p>.<p>Here, under the banners of “technology transfer,” “Make in India”, and “industrial modernisation”, a new kind of pollution colonialism is unfolding. In short, Europe is cleaning up its skies and rivers by exporting its toxicity, while India is accepting these discarded machines as emblems of progress.</p>.<p>A story that has been simmering for years came into sharp focus with one seemingly innocuous deal: the relocation of chemical equipment from a shuttered Italian factory to a new home in Maharashtra. This was no ordinary transaction. It marked the resurrection of a poison Europe itself has declared too dangerous for human proximity — “forever chemicals.”</p>.<p>In 2018, Italy shut down one of its most notorious polluters: the Miteni PFAS plant in Vicenza, which had contaminated groundwater across the Veneto region and poisoned more than 350,000 people. The plant’s executives were convicted in 2024 for “environmental devastation.” PFAS — per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, better known as “forever chemicals” because they never degrade in nature — were its product line. Once in soil or water, PFAS persist for centuries, accumulating in the blood, liver, and tissues of humans and animals alike. They are linked to cancers, infertility, immune disorders, and developmental harm in children.</p>.<p>Italy, horrified by the health fallout after long protests by citizens, moved to phase out PFAS production. An Indian company, Laxmi Organic Industries, saw an opportunity. Through its subsidiary Viva Lifesciences, the company acquired Miteni’s decommissioned poison junk and shipped it to Lote Parashuram MIDC, an industrial estate bordering the fragile Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary. In 2023, Italy’s PFAS ghost came alive under Indian skies. The machinery that poisoned Italian families now operates near the villages and rivers of Maharashtra.</p>.<p>Italy’s story is not an isolated one. Across Europe, a slow exodus of dirty industrial infrastructure is underway. Dow Chemical’s Stade plant in Germany is dismantling two polymer trains producing polycarbonates — materials linked to toxic emissions and complex waste streams. These are being shipped to the Gujarat-based company Deepak’s facility in Dahej, where they will be reassembled and restarted by 2028.</p>.<p>Dow, the world’s largest chemical company, plans to close several major units across Europe under intense regulatory and community pressure: an ethylene cracker in Böhlen, chlor-alkali and vinyl assets in Schkopau, and a siloxanes plant in Barry, UK. British chemical giant INEOS is shutting chemical units in Rheinberg, and Saudi multinational SABIC is closing its Teesside olefins cracker in Redcar, in the northeast of England. These closures reflect a plain truth: Europe no longer wishes to bear the ecological and social cost of these polluting industries.</p>.<p>But these stories don’t end with shutdowns. These “stranded assets” are being sold off, piece by piece, to eager buyers in India’s chemical heartlands — Dahej, Mangaluru, Visakhapatnam, Panipat, Paradeep. The logic is chillingly simple: what is too dirty for Düsseldorf is good enough for Dahej.</p>.<p>Pollution colonialism</p>.<p>Officials and investors call this economic growth, but beneath this rhetoric lies a dangerous reality: India is trading its environmental and public health future for short-term industrial gains. Europe’s stringent environmental norms and carbon pricing make the continued operation of such plants uneconomical. In contrast, India’s lax regulatory oversight, weak enforcement, and cheaper land and labour create a haven for pollution arbitrage. The relocation of used reactors, distillation columns, and polymer trains — often described as “brownfield upgrades” — is cloaked in bureaucratic language. The essence, however, remains stark: Europe exports its pollution; India imports its peril.</p>.<p>Among all chemical threats, PFAS stand apart for their permanence and potency. These chemicals are used in non-stick cookware, waterproof fabrics, food packaging, and firefighting foams. Their carbon-fluorine bonds are among the strongest in chemistry, resisting natural degradation. PFAS is now found in rainwater, Arctic snow, and the blood of 97% of humans on Earth.</p>.<p>Once released, they do not disappear — they accumulate and end up in breastmilk and in blood, liver and brain. The production and use of PFAS in India is especially alarming because these chemicals are nearly impossible to contain. Waste discharges from the factories and the aftereffects of their widespread use lead them to the water tables and crop fields. The health impacts can persist for generations and are catastrophic.</p>.<p>By permitting the machinery that devastated Veneto to restart production in Maharashtra, India risks repeating one of Europe’s greatest environmental scandals — this time in a larger, more densely populated area.</p>.<p>This isn’t just about one plant or one industry. It’s about the future we are building. Coastal chemical hubs like Dahej, Paradeep, and Mangaluru are dangerously close to ecologically sensitive zones — estuaries, mangroves, and agricultural lands that sustain millions. If PFAS and other hazardous substances enter our rivers or aquifers, no clean-up technology in the world can reverse the damage. We risk contaminating the food chain, livestock, and groundwater — the invisible arteries of life itself.</p>.<p>Let’s not forget: India is already grappling with rising cancer clusters near industrial zones, poisoned rivers like the Periyar and Yamuna, and declining soil fertility. Adding Europe’s chemical rejects to this toxic mix is not development; it is self-destruction masquerading as progress.</p>.<p><em>(The writer is an environmentalist and the author of Heavy Metal and Vaccine Nation)</em></p><p><em>Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.</em></p>
