Conflicto en torno a una intervención tecnológica: Percepción del riesgo ambiental, conocimiento y ambivalencia en la explotación minera de Bajo de la Alumbrera

the population of a small town in argentina is experiencing fear of damages caused to the environment, to production and to health by the open cast mining that is taking place in their territory since 1997. this fear has generated a conflict between experts and the local population. both sides deny and discredit each other. this paper aims at exploring the local population's rejection to the mining exploitation in their surroundings as a way of installing a new debate over the relationship between experts and general public in the construction of knowledge. the approach of this paper is micro-social and centres itself on the arguments provided by different actors that participate in the conflict. throughout the text that follows, these arguments are carefully discriminated in order to define the subjective positions of the participants. there is also place for an extensive exploration of the importance and meaning the knowledge of experts has on non experts and of the role that common people's knowledge plays in issues concerning pollution. finally, this paper analyses all aspects related to the situation that have had an influence on the subjective perception of local people and, particularly, in regard of the ambivalence they show when giving their opinion about the risk that open cast mining represents to their territory.