Materialist analysis of technology, society and the environment

Exchange Value - Labor value = Surplus Value (the value that has been extracted from labor)

Capital tries to externalize the costs of protecting the environment (e.g. cheaper to pollute if you can get away with it) and costs of labor reproducing itself (cheaper to have employees pay for their own health care, etc.), but this can create crisis which harms capital.

Capitalism in USA: pollution due to corporations' attempt to externalize costs to nature
social problem due to corporations' attempt to externalize costs to society

State socialism in USSR: pollution (as well as many social problems) due to:

A) authoritarian nature of marxist beliefs, e.g. no containment vessel for nuclear power plants because "errors are only due to capitalism."
B) Lack of free press (so can't complain when disasters like Love Canal strike).
C) Lack of competition for technological advancement: higher tech is often more efficient, less polluting.