Methis: Studia Humaniora Estonica (Dec 2022)
Keskkonnakaitse autoritaarsetes ühiskondades / Environmental Protection in Authoritarian Societies
Abstract
Artikkel käsitleb riigi sekkumist keskkonnaprobleemidesse autoritaarse riigikorraga riikides, tuues võrdluseks ka näiteid liberaalsetest demokraatiatest 20. sajandi teisel poolel. Keskkonnast kõnelemisel ökoloogiliste argumentide asemel majanduslikele kaalutlustele rõhumine on võte, mida on kasutatud mõlemal pool nn raudset eesriiet. Üksiknäidetena käsitleb artikkel Reini jõe reostust Lääne-Saksamaal, Ladina-Ameerikast Guatemala ja Tšiili juhtumeid, kus eri argumentide toel on autoritaarsed võimud olnud huvitatud džunglite muutmisest keelualadeks. Keskkonna kahjustamist tarbimise kaudu esindab Tallinna Limonaaditehase juhtum. Sotsialistliku Ungari näitel analüüsitakse moodsate reoveepuhastussüsteemide ehitust ning nende rakendamist propagandavankri ette. Summary This article discusses the complex relationships between the natural environment and authoritarian governments in comparison to addressing similar problems in liberal democracies during the second half of the 20th century. A brief survey of the main theoretical sources is provided. Emphasising economic instead of ecological arguments in addressing environmental problems is a method that has been used on both sides of the Iron curtain of the Cold War. Individual cases discussed include the management of the pollution of Rhein river in Western Germany, establishing of jungle areas as no-go-zones by the Guatemalan and Chilean juntas, but also Hungarian cases of the construction of wastewater treatment plants and the shortcomings in the production in Tallinn Lemonade Factory. The individual cases are related to a broader context of environmentalism to study how and why authoritarian and democratic governments have used technology and propaganda to promote the conservation of natural resources. In conclusion, this article aims to explain how and why various approaches under various political and economic circumstances to mend the environment eventually failed.
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