China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) is generally considered to be understaffed and weak…The recent crackdown…on lead battery manufacturers and smelters is a grand example of powerful environmental enforcement… Forcing all polluters to close shop is an effective means of reducing pollution. But is this a sustainable form of environmental regulation?...[F]or the average citizens, they should not have to suffer deadly levels of pollution before a regulator decides to take action...Without more attention paid to building a reliably stronger and independent MEP, it is quite likely that many of these battery producers will do what is all too common in China — pack-up and move to a more remote place where the local government is happy to increase pollution for increased revenue.