Indigenous peoples in Costa Rica and El Diqus hydroelectric project

This book investigates the Brunca and the Teribe, two indigenous groups in Costa Rica, and their response to a proposed hydropower development on their territories. The Costa Rican Institute of Electricity (ICE) started the first attempt in order to extract the hydropower resources on the indigenous territory in 1970 with the Boruca - Cajn Project. However, this project stagnated and today the Proyecto Hidroellectrico El Diqus (PHED) is the current alternative of the same project, affecting Tribe territory. A conflictline can be drawn between the Tribe fighting against the PHED, and those in favour of the plans. The aim of this study has been to investigate the resistance against the hydropower development in the indigenous communities and their arguments for fighting the project.