[eddd]

This article fails to mention how much waste got generated on the other end of the economy.

Poland generates much less green house gases now they It was back in the day (https://www.worldometers.info/co2-emissions/poland-co2-emiss...).

Argument that we were too poor to generate waste somehow doesn't resonate with me. The amount of toxic pollution going to rivers and ground waters was much higher than developed countries.

Industrial sector got virtually no environmental oversight, all that mattered was to beat the west in the cold war.