Future-histories of Hanford: the material and semiotic production of a landscape

Abstract

Arguably the largest and most expensive land remediation project in world history is under way at the Hanford plutonium production facility in Washington State. This paper examines competing visions for the future Hanford landscape focusing on the narratives told by agriculturists and environmental preservationists. I show that their narratives, what I call ‘future-histories’, rely on historical geographies of the region to make moral as well as material arguments about the future uses of the landscape. The example of Hanford future-histories leads to several conclusions about landscapes. First, that landscapes are both material and symbolic: they require both physical and mental labour. Second, that an ontology of landscapes must take seriously the work of nature, and moreover that people necessarily impute and ascribe meaning to that labour. The essay seeks to promote a relational and solidly materialist ontology of the physical and mental labours necessary for the production of future-historical landscapes.

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