Environmental problems are a focus of popular unrest within China and concern about the "China threat" in the rest of the world. Although pollution created by automobiles, heavy industry, and coal-fired power plants captures most of the public attention, many of China's rural areas are also plagued by an environmental crisis. The environmental problems faced by China's farmers stem directly from a model of economic growth built on the destructive extraction of natural resources, massive capital accumulation, and the uprooting of local populations. These problems are not likely to be resolved by free markets or the top-down importation of technology from the West. Rather, the plight of China's farmers and rural environment is a wake-up call for us all. Environmental problems are a focus of popular unrest within China and concern about the "China threat" in the rest of the world. Although pollution created by automobiles, heavy industry, and coal-fired power plants captures most of the public attention, many of China's rural areas are also plagued by an environmental crisis. The environmental problems faced by China's farmers stem directly from a model of economic growth built on the destructive extraction of natural resources, massive capital accumulation, and the uprooting of local populations. These problems are not likely to be resolved by free markets or the top-down importation of technology from the West. Rather, the plight of China's farmers and rural environment is a wake-up call for us all.