摘要：Over the last decade, many energy experts have supported carbon sequestration as a viable
technological response to climate change. Given the potential importance of sequestration
in US energy policy, what might explain the views of communities that may be directly
impacted by the siting of this technology? To answer this question, we conducted focus
groups in two communities who were potentially pilot project sites for California's
DOE-funded West Coast Regional Partnership (WESTCARB). We find that communities
want a voice in defining the risks to be mitigated as well as the justice of the procedures by
which the technology is implemented. We argue that a community's sense of
empowerment is key to understanding its range of carbon sequestration opinions, where
'empowerment' includes the ability to mitigate community-defined risks of the
technology. This sense of empowerment protects the community against the downside
risk of government or corporate neglect, a risk that is rarely identified in risk
assessments but that should be factored into assessment and communication
strategies.
