Clay territories in search of a way out. Interpreting Green Sacrifice and Framing a Bioregional Alternative

Abstract

Geographic areas disproportionately affected by the negative externalities of dominant development patterns – often framed in environmental justice terms as sacrifice zones – can be understood as “sacred territories” subjected to slow and cumulative forms of violence. The original notion of a sacred territory illuminates the biopolitical dimensions of regional and national planning decisions, complementing environmental and spatial justice frameworks while highlighting the limits of existing tools in addressing complex, “wicked” problems. Tuscia Castrense, in Italy, exemplifies such a condition, where locational choices for energy production, waste disposal, and the search for a nuclear waste repository site reveal a persistent entanglement of ecological, social, and infrastructural pressures. The article further explores the potential of a bioregional approach, connecting bodies and places through regenerative metabolisms, fostering non-extractive forms of territorial self-development, and participatory decision-making mechanisms. Drawing inspiration from practices of territorial defence in the Global South, this perspective opens pathways to resist and potentially reverse the logic and consequences of sacrifice, suggesting that affirmation and resistance can mutually reinforce the creation of more just and sustainable territorial futures.