id AA07744; Thu, 2 Dec 93 08:01:00 EST
Date: Thu, 2 Dec 93 08:01:00 EST
From: sonn@cres1.anu.edu.au (David A. Sonnenfeld,
      Centre for Resource & Env. Studies, ANU)
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David A. Sonnenfeld                                E-mail: sonn@cres.anu.edu.au
Visiting Research Fellow
Centre for Resource & Environmental Studies             fax: +61 6 249 0757 (W)
The Australian National University                       ph: +61 6 249 3057 (W)
GPO Box 4                                                ph: +61 6 249 4277 (M)
Canberra, ACT 2601
AUSTRALIA
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                            A B S T R A C T
                         PhD Research-in-Process
 
TITLE:  "The Influence of Environmental Activism on Technological
Development in the Pulp and Paper Industries of Australia, Indonesia,
and Thailand"
 
AUTHOR:  David A. Sonnenfeld, Ph.D. Candidate, Sociology,
Univ. California, Santa Cruz; Visiting Research Fellow, Centre for
Resource and Environmental Studies, the Australian National University
 
SUPERVISOR:  Prof. Andrew Szasz, Board of Studies in Sociology,
Univ. California, Santa Cruz
 
EXPECTED COMPLETION DATE:  June 1995
 
KEYWORDS:  activism Australia biotechnology chlorine development
dioxin environment government Greenpeace Indonesia industry movement
paper politics pollution pulp regulation science sociology technology
Thailand transfer water wood
 
ABSTRACT:
 
This dissertation explores the influence of environmental social
movements on technological and industrial development in the late
20th century, through a case study of environmental technology in
the pulp and paper industries of Australia, Indonesia, and Thailand.
 
Of particular interest is the influence of protest on the development,
transfer, modification, and implementation of alternatives to the use
of chlorine in pulping and bleaching, and on the mitigation of
pollution of local water supplies by dioxin and other toxic residuals
of the production of wood pulp.
 
My working thesis is that the environmental movement in general,
and Greenpeace in particular, have succeeded in effecting a
technological shift in an important industry.  New bleaching methods
using alternative chemical, biological, and mechanical processes have
been developed, and are being implemented around the world.  The
influence has been strongest in more developed countries; but has been
felt elsewhere, too, through local protest and the power of 'green'
consumerism in export markets.
 
Australia, Indonesia, and Thailand were selected as research sites
because they each have sizeable pulp and paper industries, are in
a region of dynamic economic growth, have strong environmental
movements, have strong government involvement in industrial policy,
and have a history of scientific, technological, and cultural exchange.
In all three, environmental issues involving the pulp and paper
industry have been very important in recent years.
 
Theoretically, this study bridges macro and micro explanations
of social and technological change, while challenging purely
economic theories of such change.  It uses historical sociology,
economic geography, and political economy to help explain global
and regional influences on local decision-making.  It utilizes
political sociology, the 'new' sociology of science and technology,
and international relations theory to illuminate the fine-grained
influences of collaborative networks and conflictual relations
on technology development, diffusion and implementation.
 
Data for this study are being gathered through multiple methods.
Background research has been conducted using available data
in the United States and Australia.  Interviews of industry
officials, government regulators, research scientists, and
environmental activists will be conducted in Australia,
Indonesia and Thailand; site visits will be made in these
countries, also. Secondary data are being collected on related
developments around the world.
 
(22 Nov 93)