Browsing by Subject "Sustainability Transition"

This thesis explores the political decision-making process related to a cancelled PV park development in the city of Järvenpää, Finland. A PV park planned by the energy company Helen in Järvenpää was cancelled due to city council’s opposition of the project. Serving as an illustrative case study, this thesis highlights the political process, discourses and arguments used from both by the supporters and opponents of the project in the city council. This thesis sets out to explore how different political agents operate in the decision-making process regarding energy projects, and which factors, including whose voices, influence their behaviour. By utilising semi-structured interviews with local Järvenpää city councillors, as well as publicly available materials, including opinion pieces and council’s records, this thesis analyses the discourses and arguments used in this local political decision-making process. Using the framework of energy justice and evaluating the discourses and arguments put forward by the supporters and opposers of the project, this thesis shows three crucial differences discourses about the planned PV park put forward by the local politicians, which relate to the different arguments made for or against the park. These three discourses are broadly categorised as: The Nature of the PV Park; The Participation of Residents; and Political Positionalities. The opponents and supporters of the project put forward fundamentally different arguments about the nature of the PV park, as well as of the current nature of the space without the park. The negative reaction of the residents was also seen differently, as either organic resistance or as politically manufactured. Pre-existing political positionalities were used by both parties as explaining factors of the others’ behavior and beliefs, either due to ideological “obsession” or populism. Additionally, the high socio-economic status of the nearby residents was brought up as a significant factor. These findings connect to previous literature, by showcasing that financial incentives are not always enough to gain approval of energy development projects as well as questioning whether a public hearing is enough to guarantee procedural justice if the voices of high-ranking socio-economic group members dominate over others.