In the distant future the planet Earth is surrounded by a poisonous ring of debris in space. Society has broken down, with the result that towns like Carbon are falling apart. Ruled over by the corrupt Jerry Paul (Ron Perlman), who controls both the mining workforce and the water supply, the population is divided by racism, rivalry and fear. However, it is not too late for the town to rise up and save itself from the appalling squalor into which it has fallen under Paul.