ABSTRACT
Concerns about climate change, energy security, and green jobs have produced a resounding public call for renewable energy development in the U.S. Consequently, federal investments in renewable energy research and development have multiplied at an unprecedented rate. These investments presume broad public support for the new green energy economy. Yet national opinion polls often mask strong local resistance to the installation of new energy projects, including hydro, solar, biofuels and wind. Communities across rural America are challenging the transparency and accountability of the government decision-making that is vastly resculpting energy geographies. The news media has termed this conflict the “green civil war” between climate change mitigation and landscape preservation goals.
