Territorial change perceptions mapping following the closure of a nuclear power plant. An application of the Perception-Based Regional Mapping (PBRM) geographical method in Fessenheim (France)

Spatialisation des perceptions de l’évolution d’un territoire suite à la fermeture d’une centrale nucléaire Une application de la méthode géographique ZADA à Fessenheim (France)

Valentine Erne-Heintz () and Eric Maire ()
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Valentine Erne-Heintz: IDEES - Identité et Différenciation de l’Espace, de l’Environnement et des Sociétés - UNICAEN - Université de Caen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - ULH - Université Le Havre Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - UNIROUEN - Université de Rouen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - IRIHS - Institut de Recherche Interdisciplinaire Homme et Société - UNIROUEN - Université de Rouen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université
Eric Maire: GEODE - Géographie de l'environnement - UT2J - Université Toulouse - Jean Jaurès - Comue de Toulouse - Communauté d'universités et établissements de Toulouse - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

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Abstract: This contribution proposes to revisit the experience of the closure of the Fessenheim nuclear power plant (France). It questions the notions of energy and territorial transitions and their representations by the habitants. The hypothesis is that the dismantling of a power plant can be the starting point of a disruptive and radical break to embark on a new trajectory for the territory. We rely on the results of a field study which aims to reveal the place of a nuclear power in the discourses of the inhabitants of the territory after the closure. To do this, we are deploying the Perception-Based Regional Mapping (PBRM), which is carried out through cartographic interviews. This method collecting information through maps and reveals spontaneous representations of post-dismantling issues. The question is whether the closure of the plant can be, or not, an accelerator for the reconversion of the territory or whether dependence on nuclear activity hinders the possibility of envisaging other trajectories (industrial or not). This study highlights the challenges of spontaneously emerging representations of space and the gap between the political will to decarbonize the territory. It gives visibility to the agricultural subject in a territory classically identified as nuclear. This contrast is particularly notable and highlights an ability of the inhabitants to go beyond the strong nuclear identity of the Fessenheim territory, which is perhaps not unrelated to the shutdown of the plant itself.

Keywords: geographical survey; landscape; territory; nuclear; Perception-Based Regional Mapping (PBRM); transition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-04-23
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Published in L'Espace Politique, A paraître, 57 (3), https://journals.openedition.org/espacepolitique/17354

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05588679

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