Underground Environmentalism in Former Communist East Germany

This is a very interesting piece from Dave Roberts at Grist. He recalls that environmentalism was initially a high priority for the communist state and that quality of life, represented by clean working conditions, air and water, were supposed to distinguish East Germany from the capitalist West. As the need for increased industrial capacity grew and a dependence on dirty lignite coal brought brown smog the environmental standards went by the wayside. The State eventually declared all environmental information to be state secrets and an underground resistance developed.
http://www.grist.org/article/2011-04-21-underground-environmentalism-in-communist-east-germany