Gas and development : rural territorial dynamics in Tarija, Bolivia

Abstract

Identification of sub-national effects as a new form of resource curse is a vital contribution to the literature. Analysis of recent economic, political, and territorial transformations of Bolivia’s gas-rich region, Tarija, describes pre-existing territorial projects that have shaped the influence of the gas industry on local dynamics; changed the scale relationships between local communities, the state, and companies; and mediated the transformation of territories in ways determined by the nature and aspirations of these territorial projects. Large-scale investment in extractive industries is often the determining factor in organization and use of rural space and rural communities.