People of the sun: Local resistance and solar energy (in)justice in southern Portugal

Abstract

This paper explores a public controversy surrounding a large solar power plant planned for the village of Cercal, in Alentejo, southern Portugal, mobilizing energy justice literature to shed light on the contradictions and injustices (re)produced by hegemonic energy transitions. Drawing on qualitative data from interviews, fieldwork and document analysis, this controversy is unpacked through three main tenets of energy justice: distributional, procedural and recognition, contributing to current research on solar energy justice.Our empirical findings indicate that the local population and environmental movements are concerned that Cercal might become a “green sacrifice zone” for the sake of the hegemonic energy transition. Procedural injustices were of particular concern, with interviewees claiming that the public consultation process failed to involve the local community, indicating that the State and corporate actors do not recognize residents as legitimate stakeholders, disregarding protest and active discord as legitimate forms of political participation.This original case study, unfolding in a country currently experiencing a significant lithium mining controversy, is a flagship example of how top-down and corporate energy transitions are major drivers of energy injustices, enforcing green grabbing and the enactment of green sacrifice zones under the aegis of carbon reductionism. In order to address these contradictions, a radical shift in the socioeconomic and political dynamics underlying the hegemonic energy transition is urgently needed, alongside the meaningful involvement of local communities in decision-making processes directly affecting their territories and livelihoods.