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“Laciana Is Black. Greens Go Away!” Environmentalists as Scapegoats in a Mountaintop Removal Conflict in Laciana Valley, Spain

“Laciana Is Black. Greens Go Away!” Environmentalists as Scapegoats in a Mountaintop Removal... This article presents findings from a case study of a socioenvironmental conflict concerning mountaintop removal coal mining (MTR) in Spain. For 15 years, illegal and subsidised MTR has been providing a number of jobs along with significant negative environmental and social impacts in an area protected by European environmental legislation. In 2018, the European Union (EU) will prohibit state coal subsidies and the local population is already deeply divided, and the atmosphere confrontational. Drawing on ethnography, interviews, and document analysis, this article explores the narrative variations—“disease,” “traitor,” “lazy foreigner,” and “salon environmentalist”—characterising environmentalists as scapegoats, and the importance of these social processes for building an ecological resistance movement in a historical coal mining area. The article concludes that, as in related conflicts elsewhere, violence against those criticising MTR practices, as well as a “culture of silence,” have strongly limited the success of the anti-MTR movement. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Organization & Environment SAGE

“Laciana Is Black. Greens Go Away!” Environmentalists as Scapegoats in a Mountaintop Removal Conflict in Laciana Valley, Spain

Cabrejas, Amaranta Herrero
Organization & Environment , Volume 25 (4): 18 – Dec 1, 2012
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References (76)

Publisher
SAGE
Copyright
© 2012 SAGE Publications
ISSN
1086-0266
eISSN
1552-7417
DOI
10.1177/1086026612464973
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

This article presents findings from a case study of a socioenvironmental conflict concerning mountaintop removal coal mining (MTR) in Spain. For 15 years, illegal and subsidised MTR has been providing a number of jobs along with significant negative environmental and social impacts in an area protected by European environmental legislation. In 2018, the European Union (EU) will prohibit state coal subsidies and the local population is already deeply divided, and the atmosphere confrontational. Drawing on ethnography, interviews, and document analysis, this article explores the narrative variations—“disease,” “traitor,” “lazy foreigner,” and “salon environmentalist”—characterising environmentalists as scapegoats, and the importance of these social processes for building an ecological resistance movement in a historical coal mining area. The article concludes that, as in related conflicts elsewhere, violence against those criticising MTR practices, as well as a “culture of silence,” have strongly limited the success of the anti-MTR movement.

Journal

Organization & Environment – SAGE

Published: Dec 1, 2012

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