Suchergebnisse

Arguing that a crisis is upon us, the Bush Administration has proposed an energy strategy remarkable in its scope and audacity. While much criticism has been directed towards the plan's ecological impacts, it also guarantees the continuing collapse of communities tha stand in the way of the full realization of the current energy economy. This situation is best understood reference to evolving notions of environmental justice. Unfortunately, the variety of meanings attributable to environmental justice often times come into conflict when applied to specific cases. Until a way is found to reconcile the idea's many diverse meanings and to prevent one or another to be used in a specific institutional context to the exclusion of all others, environmental justice will, in a perverse way, be turned into yet another means to disregard society's most vulnerable members.

"Power Struggles: Hydro Development and First Nations in Manitoba and Quebec examines the evolution of new agreements between First Nations and Inuit and the hydro corporations in Quebec and Manitoba, including the Wuskwatim Dam Project, Paix des Braves, and the Great Whale Project. In the 1970s, both provinces signed so-called "modern treaties" with First Nations for the development of large hydro projects in Aboriginal territories. In recent times, however, the two provinces have diverged in their implementation, and public opinion of these agreements has ranged from celebratory to outrage. Power Struggles brings together perspectives on these issues from both scholars and activists."--Jacket

The Canadian province of Manitoba has long pursued an aggressive strategy of hydroelectric development. This effort was predicated upon a mix of old and new assumptions, including long-held beliefs that power must be cheap and that the province, operating through its crown utility, Manitoba Hydro, possessed the only legitimate claim to northern land and water resources. The province also recognised the need to remove Aboriginal communities from lands and resources to be used for hydro development notwithstanding the fact that these communities and individuals had long practiced what was, by many accounts, a comfortable and economically viable way of life. Using a social capital framework developed by both sociologists and political scientists, the consequences of this strategy on the displaced Aboriginal residents of South Indian Lake, a small community located in Manitoba's northern hydro region, are examined. The analysis is based on interviews conducted with former residents now living in a number of urban centers throughout the province. It is concluded that these individuals have been largely, if not entirely, unsuccessful in forming the variety of communal bonds emphasised by social capital theorists. These difficulties continue today, as individuals who were left on their own, with little assistance either from back home or from the state, exist in a world largely devoid of supportive social networks

The Canadian province of Manitoba has long pursued an aggressive strategy of hydroelectric development. This effort was predicated upon a mix of old and new assumptions, including long-held beliefs that power must be cheap and that the province, operating through its crown utility, Manitoba Hydro, possessed the only legitimate claim to northern land and water resources. The province also recognised the need to remove Aboriginal communities from lands and resources to be used for hydro development notwithstanding the fact that these communities and individuals had long practiced what was, by many accounts, a comfortable and economically viable way of life. Using a social capital framework developed by both sociologists and political scientists, the consequences of this strategy on the displaced Aboriginal residents of South Indian Lake, a small community located in Manitoba's northern hydro region, are examined. The
analysis is based on interviews conducted with former residents now living in a number of urban centers throughout the province. It is concluded that these individuals have been largely, if not entirely, unsuccessful in forming the variety of communal bonds emphasised
by social capital theorists. These difficulties continue today, as individuals who were left on their own, with little assistance either from back home or from the state, exist in a world largely devoid of supportive social networks

Community energy based on a mix of distributed technologies offers a serious alternative to the current energy system. The nature of community energy and the role that such initiatives might play in the general fabric of civic life is not, however, well understood. Community energy initiatives might involve only those citizens who prefer to be actively and continuously involved in intense, democratic debate. A more robust conceptualization of community energy might, on the other hand, be guided by Benjamin Barber's notion of "strong democracy," in which community energy initiatives would draw upon a much broader citizen base, involving people from many walks of life and from quarters not generally presumed to be part of a sustained democratic process. The history of community energy is explored and a number of case studies are presented to illustrate the problems, prospects, and limitations of a socially and technologically decentralized energy system.

A clean energy future is both plausible and in the best interests of the country. The Upper Midwest, acting in concert with appropriate policy changes at the national level, could play a pivotal role in helping the nation move in that direction. As the past century's embrace of centralized power is beginning to weaken, a variety of policy drivers, including concerns about energy system capacity and reliability, the improvement of public health by reducing pollution, the enhancement of national security by decreased reliance on nuclear power, and the need to curtail greenhouse gas emissions, are beginning to make clear the outlines of this energy transition. The proposals offered by the Environmental Lawand Policy Center and Minnesotans for an Energy-Efficient Economy rely on proven, economical, and environmentally sustainable technology options. An aggressive development plan featuring efficiency, wind, and other renewable resources will be a significant first step in solving the climate change problem.