The interplay of environmental justice and environmental psychology in environmental conflicts: a case study of the La Farfana water sewage treatment plant and the Pudahuel community in Santiago Chile

UnrestrictedThe main purpose of this doctoral dissertation was to analyze the structural and subjective dimensions of a community that can explain the transformation of an environmental hazard into an environmental conflict, using the theoretical framework of environmental justice and environmental psychology and the qualitative case study of the La Farfana sludge treatment plant crisis in Pudahuel community.; Environmental justice literature helped in framing the conflict within the relationship of people-environment and justice, and helped in understanding how the socioeconomic, institutional and environmental characteristics of a community affect its residents’ perceptions of environmental justice and vulnerability. Environmental psychology provided the subjective dimensions, such as place attachment, locus of control, empowerment and responsibility and awareness towards the environment.; Through in-depth interviews and focus groups the perception of all actors relevant to the conflict were gathered. The responses of interviewees were coded according to the specified variables. Results point to the relevance of including both structural and subjective categories for understanding people’s feelings about environmental justice and vulnerability in environmental conflicts.; This dissertation’s intent has been to provide a new framework that considers the natural environment as a matter of environmental justice. It also emphasizes the need to provide for adequate information and participation processes in order for communities to be part of environmental decisions that affect them