Environmental Values 21 (2012) 163ndash183 copy 2012 The White Horse Pressdoi 103197096327112X13303670567297

Traumatic Natures of the Swamp Concepts of Nature in the Romanian Danube Delta

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE

Communication amp Innovation StudiesWageningen UniversityHollandseweg 1 6706 KN Wageningen The NetherlandsEmail kristofvanasschewurnland Research Fellow ZEF Institute for Development Research Bonn University corresponding author

SANDRA BELL

AnthropologyDurham University UK

PETRUTA TEAMPAU

Political ScienceBabes Bolyai University Cluj Napoca Romania

ABSTRACT

This paper focuses on local constructions of lsquonaturersquo in governance processes and the importance of historical and institutional contexts for their genesis and functioning Through extensive field study in the Romanian Danube Delta it is demonstrated that the origin and distribution of certain concepts can be credited to a history of conflicts over land and resource use Considering the implica-tions for participatory natural resource governance we argue that this capacity of the governance context to produce and transform concepts of nature poses real challenges To these challenges can be added legacies of disempowerment and marginalisation evident in local inhabitantsrsquo images and concepts of nature which we seek to understand by developing a theory of traumatic nature

KEYWORDS

Concepts of nature traumatic nature Danube Delta participatory governance

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

164

Environmental Values 212

INTRODUCTION

In the Romanian Danube Delta as elsewhere nature is many things to many people Nature is always socially constructed as people have access to nature through cultural processes of reciprocally negotiated concepts and images (Descola and Palsson 1996 Latour 2004) That implies a multiplicity of concepts and images and an inherent dynamism in the construction of nature discursive constructions of nature never stand still (Descola 2005 Glacken 1967) These ideas concerning the socially constructed features of lsquonaturersquo and their ensu-ing spatial and temporal relativity now appear as commonplace assumptions in the social science literature on biodiversity conservation (Ellen and Fukui 1996 Souleacute and Lease 1995 Descola and Palsson 1996) Their acceptance led to assertions that workable conservation policies depend on awareness of local peoplersquos evaluation of the natural environment and arguments for a more inclusive approach (OrsquoRiordan 2002 Stringer et al 2006 2009 Keulartz et al 2004 Turnhout 2004 Buijs 2009) In other words the modernist ecological scientific biodiversity conservation project has taken what might be termed a lsquoparticipatory turnrsquo (Stringer et al 2006 and OrsquoRiordan 2002 for an overview) Over the past two decades results of the kinds of schemes suggested and in some cases implemented under the banner of participation have been mixed (Fischer 2000 Latour 2004 Stringer et al 2006 Kepe 1997) Mannigel repre-sents them schematically as ideal types positioned along a continuum stretching lsquofrom a simple sharing of information to transfer of power and responsibilitiesrsquo from authorities to stakeholders (Mannigel 2008 400)

Ways and means and even the desirability of establishing participatory regimes have been the subject of much debate (Keulartz et al 2004 Beunen 2009 Mannigel 2008 Galatchi 2009) It is certainly naiumlve to underestimate obstacles to the successful implementation of lsquodeliberative democracy and participatory biodiversity conservationrsquo as convincingly demonstrated in an exposition by OrsquoRiordan and Stoll-Kleeman (2002) Their list of potential im-pediments includes process dependent outcomes engendering disillusion and disengagement difficulties faced by people who are not expert or accustomed to get involved failure to find a common language diversity of interests dilut-ing the original objectives failure to include the most disadvantaged groups unacceptable levels of investment in time consuming processes and resources the necessity for compromise and the danger of participation fatigue (ibid pp 99ndash109)

Our research in the Danube Delta confirms everything on this list but we also detect another obstacle of a particularly awkward kind because it resides in features of the constructionist theory on which participatory approaches are founded The example of the Danube Delta reveals that extensive diversity in local peoplersquos place specific perceptions and historically contingent experiences

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

164

Environmental Values 212

INTRODUCTION

In the Romanian Danube Delta as elsewhere nature is many things to many people Nature is always socially constructed as people have access to nature through cultural processes of reciprocally negotiated concepts and images (Descola and Palsson 1996 Latour 2004) That implies a multiplicity of concepts and images and an inherent dynamism in the construction of nature discursive constructions of nature never stand still (Descola 2005 Glacken 1967) These ideas concerning the socially constructed features of lsquonaturersquo and their ensu-ing spatial and temporal relativity now appear as commonplace assumptions in the social science literature on biodiversity conservation (Ellen and Fukui 1996 Souleacute and Lease 1995 Descola and Palsson 1996) Their acceptance led to assertions that workable conservation policies depend on awareness of local peoplersquos evaluation of the natural environment and arguments for a more inclusive approach (OrsquoRiordan 2002 Stringer et al 2006 2009 Keulartz et al 2004 Turnhout 2004 Buijs 2009) In other words the modernist ecological scientific biodiversity conservation project has taken what might be termed a lsquoparticipatory turnrsquo (Stringer et al 2006 and OrsquoRiordan 2002 for an overview) Over the past two decades results of the kinds of schemes suggested and in some cases implemented under the banner of participation have been mixed (Fischer 2000 Latour 2004 Stringer et al 2006 Kepe 1997) Mannigel repre-sents them schematically as ideal types positioned along a continuum stretching lsquofrom a simple sharing of information to transfer of power and responsibilitiesrsquo from authorities to stakeholders (Mannigel 2008 400)

Ways and means and even the desirability of establishing participatory regimes have been the subject of much debate (Keulartz et al 2004 Beunen 2009 Mannigel 2008 Galatchi 2009) It is certainly naiumlve to underestimate obstacles to the successful implementation of lsquodeliberative democracy and participatory biodiversity conservationrsquo as convincingly demonstrated in an exposition by OrsquoRiordan and Stoll-Kleeman (2002) Their list of potential im-pediments includes process dependent outcomes engendering disillusion and disengagement difficulties faced by people who are not expert or accustomed to get involved failure to find a common language diversity of interests dilut-ing the original objectives failure to include the most disadvantaged groups unacceptable levels of investment in time consuming processes and resources the necessity for compromise and the danger of participation fatigue (ibid pp 99ndash109)

Our research in the Danube Delta confirms everything on this list but we also detect another obstacle of a particularly awkward kind because it resides in features of the constructionist theory on which participatory approaches are founded The example of the Danube Delta reveals that extensive diversity in local peoplersquos place specific perceptions and historically contingent experiences

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

165

Environmental Values 212

of nature entwines with various often contradictory features within the discourse of modern scientific conservation Moreover this discourse can be both appropri-ated and undermined by locals and by political actors (Bell and Reinert 2009)

Through a simultaneous analysis of local constructs of nature and the governance process in the Romanian Danube Delta we intend to investigate the significance of this process for the emergence and functioning of concepts and narratives of nature among local residents It will be argued that peoplersquos recent experiences with governance regimes and legacies from older ones can combine to produce a series of effects summarised by the term traumatic nature We explore this idea to capture how environmental perceptions and experiences are shaped by impacts of disempowerment marginalisation and stigmatisation We argue that traumatic nature is marked by a higher instability and increased polarisation of nature concepts and creates specific challenges for environmental governance

METHODS

Data collection

This paper is based on extensive fieldwork in several waves In 2001ndash2003 51 interviews and 15 focus groups with various stakeholders in the Romanian delta were conducted in the frame of the EU-funded IMEW project (Integrated Management of European Wetlands) coordinated by Sandra Bell These inter-views and focus groups occurred at various locations in the delta including Chilia Veche Sulina Mila 23 and Caraorman Research focused on rural livelihoods and perceived conflicts between nature conservation and subsistence in the marsh environment Most interviews were conducted by Romanian speaking researchers others by English speakers with the help of an interpreter Focus groups were conducted in Romanian Most respondents were fishermen or people otherwise dependent on the natural resources of the delta Interviews with civil servants served largely to contextualise these conversations with locals

In 2006ndash2008 Van Assche and Teampau conducted 70 additional interviews mostly in Tulcea and Sulina with people representing a variety of stakeholders including fishermen ecological experts civil servants NGOs and eco-tourism companies These interviews were mostly conducted in Romanian The inten-tion was to broaden the scope of the investigation to get a better grasp of the governance process and to locate the local peoplersquos constructions of nature in this process Local perceptions and responses to governance were the primary focus of investigation Selection of the stakeholders took place partly in advance based on literature research and phone conversations and partly on site with additional players who helped us to understand the tensions between uses and

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

166

Environmental Values 212

governance of the delta Most decision makers scientific experts and adminis-trators we met in the towns of Tulcea Sulina and in a few cases the villages of Mila 23 and Letea In 2008 30 additional telephone interviews were conducted with international conservation experts who have played a role in the genesis of conservation policies for the delta

For Sulina more detailed ethnographic observations are available through Teampau and Van Asschersquos fieldwork in 2007ndash2009 (Van Assche and Teampau 2009 Teampau and Van Assche 2009) Careful observation casual conversa-tion immersion in the daily life of the community as well as interviews with a wide range of inhabitants (men and women of different part-time professions) produced a deeper understanding of the significance of the surrounding land-scape and its resources to the locals and a sharper view of the formation of local responses to lsquogreenrsquo governance

To provide context in 2009 Van Assche and Teampau also carried out observa-tions and interviews (23) in Vilkovo and Reni on the Ukrainian side of the Delta These interviews mostly in Russian some in Romanian were carried out with the help of interpreters Through a compressed repetition of the exercise on the Romanian side ndash observation in all landscape types and a comparable selection of stakeholders ndash we tried to sharpen the specificity of the Romanian situation

Additional analysis of policy documents and plans serves to underpin our interpretation of the governance process and highlight the alienation of locals and their constructs of nature and landscape from that process Our aim was not to reconstruct an official discourse on nature to be juxtaposed to local construc-tions rather to enhance understanding of local responses to a shift in governance officially driven by a conservation ethos The character of this official discourse revealed itself as monolithic and almost entirely reliant on a notion of nature conservation as ecosystem conservation

We deem this combination of research episodes and methods necessary to unveil the layered semiotics of nature and place in the Danube Delta The long duration of the investigation the repeated stints of fieldwork the variety of sources and sites of observation also allowed us to test and sharpen emerg-ing interpretations through a process of triangulation Throughout this piece quotations will be located as far as possible without revealing the identity of the respondent (with the exception of foreign experts) Where relevant a place profession and age group will be indicated When people are described as young it signifies that they are under 30 years older refers to people over 50 years too old to be retrained easily after the fall of Romanian communism in 1989 Some short quotations appear for purposes of illustration but are not assigned to individuals for reasons of brevity and because they were said by more than one person

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

167

Environmental Values 212

Analysis

Our discourse analysis of interviews documents and plans is decidedly Foucauldian in inspiration (1968 1975) For Foucault a discourse is a perspective on part of reality that co-creates that reality It is in and through the construc-tion of discourse or networks of shared concepts that people shape reality Since the formation of discourse necessarily takes place collectively we speak of social construction (Hillier 2002 Van Assche 2004) Within discourse a concept cannot stand by itself the discursive context defines its meaning and in conjunction with socialpolitical contexts its range of application Hence lsquothe Danube Deltarsquo can refer to several different conceptions of the marshy swamps surrounding the river mouth depending on who deploys it and the position they occupy in relation to the nature function and future of the area

An image is a visual sign (in Peircean terms an iconic sign) of a concept Words sounds gestures can establish a link between our perceptions and a con-cept but this connection can also be made by visual means (Eco 1976) Some concepts of nature are primarily expressed by visual signs (such as landscape paintings) while others lend themselves better to verbal expression (such as notions of nature as an ecosystem)

A narrative is a specific form of discourse marked by a story-like structure Narratives on the delta feature key players lsquogoodrsquo and lsquobadrsquo characters and forces episodes dramatic events and threats Different discourses on the nature of the delta and its communities give rise to different narratives on its present state and preferred governance Actors do not exist outside discourse they are discursive products ascriptions of influence by a community or group (Hillier 2002 Flyvbjerg 1998 Van Assche et al 2009) Narratives and discourses carry markers tropes figures of speech and topoi commonplaces that allow speaker and listener to situate themselves discursively (Bal 2002)

In the Foucauldian tradition power and knowledge are considered to be mutually constitutive Since discourse is both knowledge and reality and real-ity is conceived as permeated by power it is impossible to entirely disentangle power and knowledge Concept narrative discourse are tools of power and resistance (counter-power) their formation is part of unceasing struggles be-tween competing explanations (and hence powers) Once in place they define a discursive context in which powers have to re-orient themselves Knowledge is produced in conflicts and conflicts are shaped by pre-existing knowledge (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000)

This also applies to concepts and images of nature where constructions of the environment usually imply valuations and preferred uses of these environ-ments and lead to clashes with other actors marked by different appreciations and goals (Van Assche 2001 Turnhout 2004) Simultaneously the dynamics of

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

168

Environmental Values 212

the conflicts themselves generate new images concepts and positions (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000 Van Assche et al 2009)

Discourse analysis then is the unveiling of discursive construction and discursive production by means of careful reading listening observing and looking for repetitions patterns and the network of assumptions behind these patterns Since everything is discursively structured sources can include inter-views documents but also land use patterns and resource use practices

Next we briefly sketch the most important shifts in governance to outline the context in which local constructions of nature evolved

CHANGING GOVERNANCE

Communism

Under communism canalisation reclamation and water regulation were the main practices in the management of the delta (Van Assche et al 2009) reflecting a concept of the area as a backward place with real economic potential (Pons in IUCN 1992 IUCN 1986 Van Assche et al 2008 de Jong and Schultz 1982) Fish farms were established but most remained unprofitable (Goriup 1994) In the development of the Delta several Romanian state agencies were involved under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Romanian Academy of Sciences In Tulcea Centrala Deltei established in 1970 coordinated implementation while the older Research Institute for Land Reclamation and Design (established 1932) became its main source for applied research This institute evolved into the present Danube Delta Institute National Institute for Research and Development (DDINI) focusing on conservation and develop-ment Development projects were also employment programmes for prisoners (Pons 1987 Pons and Pons-Ghitulescu 1990)

After the revolution

Immediately after the fall of communism a group of foreign and Romanian academic experts and representatives of nature organisations met in Moscow to discuss the future of the delta (Goriup 1994 IUCN 1992 UNEP 2009 UNESCO-MAB 1998) Decisions taken at this meeting led ultimately to a con-certed conservation effort Recognition as a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site followed in 1991 The World Bank provided the bulk of funding for the formation of the Romanian Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Administration DDBRA (IUCN 1992 Euroconsult IUCN 1993 World Bank 1994 Goriup 1994) In 1995 after a long consultative process a draft management plan appeared (Baboianu and Goriup 1995) The Romanian parliament passed a law for the protection of the Danube Delta (Law 8217 December 1993) and

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

166

Environmental Values 212

governance of the delta Most decision makers scientific experts and adminis-trators we met in the towns of Tulcea Sulina and in a few cases the villages of Mila 23 and Letea In 2008 30 additional telephone interviews were conducted with international conservation experts who have played a role in the genesis of conservation policies for the delta

For Sulina more detailed ethnographic observations are available through Teampau and Van Asschersquos fieldwork in 2007ndash2009 (Van Assche and Teampau 2009 Teampau and Van Assche 2009) Careful observation casual conversa-tion immersion in the daily life of the community as well as interviews with a wide range of inhabitants (men and women of different part-time professions) produced a deeper understanding of the significance of the surrounding land-scape and its resources to the locals and a sharper view of the formation of local responses to lsquogreenrsquo governance

To provide context in 2009 Van Assche and Teampau also carried out observa-tions and interviews (23) in Vilkovo and Reni on the Ukrainian side of the Delta These interviews mostly in Russian some in Romanian were carried out with the help of interpreters Through a compressed repetition of the exercise on the Romanian side ndash observation in all landscape types and a comparable selection of stakeholders ndash we tried to sharpen the specificity of the Romanian situation

Additional analysis of policy documents and plans serves to underpin our interpretation of the governance process and highlight the alienation of locals and their constructs of nature and landscape from that process Our aim was not to reconstruct an official discourse on nature to be juxtaposed to local construc-tions rather to enhance understanding of local responses to a shift in governance officially driven by a conservation ethos The character of this official discourse revealed itself as monolithic and almost entirely reliant on a notion of nature conservation as ecosystem conservation

We deem this combination of research episodes and methods necessary to unveil the layered semiotics of nature and place in the Danube Delta The long duration of the investigation the repeated stints of fieldwork the variety of sources and sites of observation also allowed us to test and sharpen emerg-ing interpretations through a process of triangulation Throughout this piece quotations will be located as far as possible without revealing the identity of the respondent (with the exception of foreign experts) Where relevant a place profession and age group will be indicated When people are described as young it signifies that they are under 30 years older refers to people over 50 years too old to be retrained easily after the fall of Romanian communism in 1989 Some short quotations appear for purposes of illustration but are not assigned to individuals for reasons of brevity and because they were said by more than one person

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

167

Environmental Values 212

Analysis

Our discourse analysis of interviews documents and plans is decidedly Foucauldian in inspiration (1968 1975) For Foucault a discourse is a perspective on part of reality that co-creates that reality It is in and through the construc-tion of discourse or networks of shared concepts that people shape reality Since the formation of discourse necessarily takes place collectively we speak of social construction (Hillier 2002 Van Assche 2004) Within discourse a concept cannot stand by itself the discursive context defines its meaning and in conjunction with socialpolitical contexts its range of application Hence lsquothe Danube Deltarsquo can refer to several different conceptions of the marshy swamps surrounding the river mouth depending on who deploys it and the position they occupy in relation to the nature function and future of the area

An image is a visual sign (in Peircean terms an iconic sign) of a concept Words sounds gestures can establish a link between our perceptions and a con-cept but this connection can also be made by visual means (Eco 1976) Some concepts of nature are primarily expressed by visual signs (such as landscape paintings) while others lend themselves better to verbal expression (such as notions of nature as an ecosystem)

A narrative is a specific form of discourse marked by a story-like structure Narratives on the delta feature key players lsquogoodrsquo and lsquobadrsquo characters and forces episodes dramatic events and threats Different discourses on the nature of the delta and its communities give rise to different narratives on its present state and preferred governance Actors do not exist outside discourse they are discursive products ascriptions of influence by a community or group (Hillier 2002 Flyvbjerg 1998 Van Assche et al 2009) Narratives and discourses carry markers tropes figures of speech and topoi commonplaces that allow speaker and listener to situate themselves discursively (Bal 2002)

In the Foucauldian tradition power and knowledge are considered to be mutually constitutive Since discourse is both knowledge and reality and real-ity is conceived as permeated by power it is impossible to entirely disentangle power and knowledge Concept narrative discourse are tools of power and resistance (counter-power) their formation is part of unceasing struggles be-tween competing explanations (and hence powers) Once in place they define a discursive context in which powers have to re-orient themselves Knowledge is produced in conflicts and conflicts are shaped by pre-existing knowledge (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000)

This also applies to concepts and images of nature where constructions of the environment usually imply valuations and preferred uses of these environ-ments and lead to clashes with other actors marked by different appreciations and goals (Van Assche 2001 Turnhout 2004) Simultaneously the dynamics of

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

168

Environmental Values 212

the conflicts themselves generate new images concepts and positions (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000 Van Assche et al 2009)

Discourse analysis then is the unveiling of discursive construction and discursive production by means of careful reading listening observing and looking for repetitions patterns and the network of assumptions behind these patterns Since everything is discursively structured sources can include inter-views documents but also land use patterns and resource use practices

Next we briefly sketch the most important shifts in governance to outline the context in which local constructions of nature evolved

CHANGING GOVERNANCE

Communism

Under communism canalisation reclamation and water regulation were the main practices in the management of the delta (Van Assche et al 2009) reflecting a concept of the area as a backward place with real economic potential (Pons in IUCN 1992 IUCN 1986 Van Assche et al 2008 de Jong and Schultz 1982) Fish farms were established but most remained unprofitable (Goriup 1994) In the development of the Delta several Romanian state agencies were involved under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Romanian Academy of Sciences In Tulcea Centrala Deltei established in 1970 coordinated implementation while the older Research Institute for Land Reclamation and Design (established 1932) became its main source for applied research This institute evolved into the present Danube Delta Institute National Institute for Research and Development (DDINI) focusing on conservation and develop-ment Development projects were also employment programmes for prisoners (Pons 1987 Pons and Pons-Ghitulescu 1990)

After the revolution

Immediately after the fall of communism a group of foreign and Romanian academic experts and representatives of nature organisations met in Moscow to discuss the future of the delta (Goriup 1994 IUCN 1992 UNEP 2009 UNESCO-MAB 1998) Decisions taken at this meeting led ultimately to a con-certed conservation effort Recognition as a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site followed in 1991 The World Bank provided the bulk of funding for the formation of the Romanian Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Administration DDBRA (IUCN 1992 Euroconsult IUCN 1993 World Bank 1994 Goriup 1994) In 1995 after a long consultative process a draft management plan appeared (Baboianu and Goriup 1995) The Romanian parliament passed a law for the protection of the Danube Delta (Law 8217 December 1993) and

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

167

Environmental Values 212

Analysis

Our discourse analysis of interviews documents and plans is decidedly Foucauldian in inspiration (1968 1975) For Foucault a discourse is a perspective on part of reality that co-creates that reality It is in and through the construc-tion of discourse or networks of shared concepts that people shape reality Since the formation of discourse necessarily takes place collectively we speak of social construction (Hillier 2002 Van Assche 2004) Within discourse a concept cannot stand by itself the discursive context defines its meaning and in conjunction with socialpolitical contexts its range of application Hence lsquothe Danube Deltarsquo can refer to several different conceptions of the marshy swamps surrounding the river mouth depending on who deploys it and the position they occupy in relation to the nature function and future of the area

An image is a visual sign (in Peircean terms an iconic sign) of a concept Words sounds gestures can establish a link between our perceptions and a con-cept but this connection can also be made by visual means (Eco 1976) Some concepts of nature are primarily expressed by visual signs (such as landscape paintings) while others lend themselves better to verbal expression (such as notions of nature as an ecosystem)

A narrative is a specific form of discourse marked by a story-like structure Narratives on the delta feature key players lsquogoodrsquo and lsquobadrsquo characters and forces episodes dramatic events and threats Different discourses on the nature of the delta and its communities give rise to different narratives on its present state and preferred governance Actors do not exist outside discourse they are discursive products ascriptions of influence by a community or group (Hillier 2002 Flyvbjerg 1998 Van Assche et al 2009) Narratives and discourses carry markers tropes figures of speech and topoi commonplaces that allow speaker and listener to situate themselves discursively (Bal 2002)

In the Foucauldian tradition power and knowledge are considered to be mutually constitutive Since discourse is both knowledge and reality and real-ity is conceived as permeated by power it is impossible to entirely disentangle power and knowledge Concept narrative discourse are tools of power and resistance (counter-power) their formation is part of unceasing struggles be-tween competing explanations (and hence powers) Once in place they define a discursive context in which powers have to re-orient themselves Knowledge is produced in conflicts and conflicts are shaped by pre-existing knowledge (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000)

This also applies to concepts and images of nature where constructions of the environment usually imply valuations and preferred uses of these environ-ments and lead to clashes with other actors marked by different appreciations and goals (Van Assche 2001 Turnhout 2004) Simultaneously the dynamics of

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

168

Environmental Values 212

the conflicts themselves generate new images concepts and positions (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000 Van Assche et al 2009)

Discourse analysis then is the unveiling of discursive construction and discursive production by means of careful reading listening observing and looking for repetitions patterns and the network of assumptions behind these patterns Since everything is discursively structured sources can include inter-views documents but also land use patterns and resource use practices

Next we briefly sketch the most important shifts in governance to outline the context in which local constructions of nature evolved

CHANGING GOVERNANCE

Communism

Under communism canalisation reclamation and water regulation were the main practices in the management of the delta (Van Assche et al 2009) reflecting a concept of the area as a backward place with real economic potential (Pons in IUCN 1992 IUCN 1986 Van Assche et al 2008 de Jong and Schultz 1982) Fish farms were established but most remained unprofitable (Goriup 1994) In the development of the Delta several Romanian state agencies were involved under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Romanian Academy of Sciences In Tulcea Centrala Deltei established in 1970 coordinated implementation while the older Research Institute for Land Reclamation and Design (established 1932) became its main source for applied research This institute evolved into the present Danube Delta Institute National Institute for Research and Development (DDINI) focusing on conservation and develop-ment Development projects were also employment programmes for prisoners (Pons 1987 Pons and Pons-Ghitulescu 1990)

After the revolution

Immediately after the fall of communism a group of foreign and Romanian academic experts and representatives of nature organisations met in Moscow to discuss the future of the delta (Goriup 1994 IUCN 1992 UNEP 2009 UNESCO-MAB 1998) Decisions taken at this meeting led ultimately to a con-certed conservation effort Recognition as a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site followed in 1991 The World Bank provided the bulk of funding for the formation of the Romanian Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Administration DDBRA (IUCN 1992 Euroconsult IUCN 1993 World Bank 1994 Goriup 1994) In 1995 after a long consultative process a draft management plan appeared (Baboianu and Goriup 1995) The Romanian parliament passed a law for the protection of the Danube Delta (Law 8217 December 1993) and

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

168

Environmental Values 212

the conflicts themselves generate new images concepts and positions (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000 Van Assche et al 2009)

Discourse analysis then is the unveiling of discursive construction and discursive production by means of careful reading listening observing and looking for repetitions patterns and the network of assumptions behind these patterns Since everything is discursively structured sources can include inter-views documents but also land use patterns and resource use practices

Next we briefly sketch the most important shifts in governance to outline the context in which local constructions of nature evolved

CHANGING GOVERNANCE

Communism

Under communism canalisation reclamation and water regulation were the main practices in the management of the delta (Van Assche et al 2009) reflecting a concept of the area as a backward place with real economic potential (Pons in IUCN 1992 IUCN 1986 Van Assche et al 2008 de Jong and Schultz 1982) Fish farms were established but most remained unprofitable (Goriup 1994) In the development of the Delta several Romanian state agencies were involved under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Romanian Academy of Sciences In Tulcea Centrala Deltei established in 1970 coordinated implementation while the older Research Institute for Land Reclamation and Design (established 1932) became its main source for applied research This institute evolved into the present Danube Delta Institute National Institute for Research and Development (DDINI) focusing on conservation and develop-ment Development projects were also employment programmes for prisoners (Pons 1987 Pons and Pons-Ghitulescu 1990)

After the revolution

Immediately after the fall of communism a group of foreign and Romanian academic experts and representatives of nature organisations met in Moscow to discuss the future of the delta (Goriup 1994 IUCN 1992 UNEP 2009 UNESCO-MAB 1998) Decisions taken at this meeting led ultimately to a con-certed conservation effort Recognition as a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site followed in 1991 The World Bank provided the bulk of funding for the formation of the Romanian Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Administration DDBRA (IUCN 1992 Euroconsult IUCN 1993 World Bank 1994 Goriup 1994) In 1995 after a long consultative process a draft management plan appeared (Baboianu and Goriup 1995) The Romanian parliament passed a law for the protection of the Danube Delta (Law 8217 December 1993) and

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

169

Environmental Values 212

the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve was made legally responsible for nature conservation and for ensuring local livelihoods

From the very beginning virtually all international actors including those with declared green goals stated the importance of regulated local economic development and of local participation But from the early stages virtually all parties became worried and after a few years gravely concerned about the lack of local participation (interviews with Erika Schneider Paul Goriup Aitken Clark Angheluta Vadineanu Hans Drost and others) The Eurpean Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) withdrew its funding for local economic development in 1995 DDBRA in the meanwhile with a scientific council originally intended as a site of citizen input even participatory gov-ernance (interviews) effectively transformed this council into an empty shell

The present day

In the current management of the Delta two organisations play a key role DDBRA and DDNI DDNI successfully transformed itself from a communist era institute for land reclamation and fisheries development into an interdisci-plinary research and policy support institution In the 1990s DDBRA focused on law enforcement According to most accounts of this period local residents were considered inimical to the implementation of conservation policies and regulations (Boja and Popescu 2000 Bell 2004 Apostol et al 2005) Since 2000 greater emphasis has been placed on the education of and communication with the local population (DDBRA 2000 World Bank 2005) DDBRA has responsibilities for water sewage and land use that in the rest of the country lie with municipality and county authorities

The authority of the DDBRA was not understood by many inhabitants at first (Goriup 1994 Euroconsult IUCN 1993) resented later (Bell 2004 Boja and Popescu 2000) and even now distrust often marks relations between DDBRA and the inhabitants of the delta villages (interviews Van Assche et al 2009) The unclear mandate of DDBRA complicates the relationship between its representatives and local people especially in the areas of law enforcement and planning Some of the formal rules benefit interest groups with strong con-nections to the distant capital Bucharest the concessionaires of large fishing grounds in the delta who employ local fishermen tourism developers villa owners wealthy hunters fish poachers (Bell 2004 Apostol et al 2005 Van Assche et al 2008 interviews) The fisheries concession system established in 2000 is not successful in protecting fish stocks (interviews DDNI) Some basic functions of local government (water sewage garbage) do not operate partly because of the unfunded mandate held by the DDBRA (Stiuca and Nichersu 2006 Dumitrescu 2005 Belacurencu 2007)

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

170

Environmental Values 212

Attempts at participatory governance leading to the draft management plan and the EBRD (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development) investment strategy (Euroconsult IUCN 1993 Baboianu and Goriup 1995) are forgotten locally or remembered as exclusionary (interviews also Apostol et al 2005) Discussion sessions in town halls in the years leading up to the 2005 Masterplan (Stiuca and Nichersu 2006) were more widely publicised better attended and according to transcripts (Bell 2004) and recollections of some people present provided a reasonably open forum for discussion of pressing issues and possible solutions However the result of these discussions the actual plan was not so widely publicised It did not contain a significantly larger role for local citizens in the governance of the delta The situation described in Apostol et al 2005 World Bank 2005 and Bell 2004 was marked by a privatisation of access to common resources such as fish and reed that local people once relied upon (cf West 2006 Ostrom 1990) and persists to the present day

It is against this background that our probing into the discursive construc-tion of nature in the Danube Delta should be understood It is in the context of such a power struggle that the concepts of nature and the narratives of the delta emerged and continue to be played out

CONCEPTS OF NATURE AND PLACE

Here we present the main categories discerned in local constructions of nature in conjunction with the discursive strategies through which they are put to use We argue that lsquonaturersquo for the current delta residents is first of all a place con-cept connected to an appropriation of the lsquoDanube Deltarsquo concept a novelty that arrived along with conservation discourse in the post-communist period

The delta as a foreign place

lsquoThe deltarsquo is itself a place concept with limited relevance to local people From the perspective of many of our informants ndash particularly older people ndash the notion of lsquothe deltarsquo is an artificial device created by outsiders to coalesce into a unified whole what actually presents as fragmented pockets of inhabited land scattered across vast tracts of uninhabited and forbidding swamp Younger respondents are more familiar with references to lsquothe deltarsquo and link this perceived geo-graphical unity with high ecological value lsquoThe delta is a bird paradise The delta has the best nature in Europe people come here from all over the place even Japanrsquo are common assertions Among older respondents especially those with a multi-generational family history in the area the picture is more com-plex They too are aware of lsquothe Danube Deltarsquo but perceive it more often as a trope originating in the discourse of lsquothe ecologistsrsquo that is the Danube Delta

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

171

Environmental Values 212

Biosphere Reserve Authority as well as certain local actors thought to be in league with them Since its foundation in 1990 the DDBRA and its regulations over resource use have affected the livelihoods of locals so lsquothe deltarsquo situates their particular village and its hinterland in a discourse that defines both place and lsquonaturersquo according to meanings they find alien In this frame lsquodeltarsquo refers to lsquonaturersquo as a collection of species reducing the home in which they were born and bred to a mere background for over-valued plants and animals

More than lsquodeltarsquo the village is a relevant place concept for older residents lsquoI am from Sulinarsquo lsquoI am from Mila 23 lived there all my lifersquo are typical asser-tions Few people say lsquoI live in the deltarsquo More common is the concept lsquobaltarsquo the swamp a concept with mostly negative connotations One goes to lsquothe baltarsquo primarily for resource use ndash fishing reed harvest sometimes medicinal plant gathering hunting (Pons 1987 1988) Respondents imply these spots useful (and positively signified) islands in a largely useless swamp A retired fisherman man in Vilkovo explains lsquoI have to work hard to maintain my garden If I turn my back the balta takes overrsquo older fishermen in Mila 23 in Chilia lsquowe had to cut our way through the baltarsquo

Partial appropriation of the delta concept

Still even among older respondents positive meanings of both lsquodeltarsquo and lsquobaltarsquo can be discerned A very common perception of decline in fish catch (also borne out by scientific studies eg Navodaru et al 2001 Navodaru and Staras 1998 Schiemer 2006) is often linked with a parallel decline in the beauty of the landscape Commonplace lamentations include lsquoThe balta used to be wonder-ful beautifulrsquo lsquoThe delta was a paradise on earth the birds were everywhere you could hear the splashing of the fishrsquo Childhood memories return lsquoWe used to play in the balta go out fish a bit collect water liliesrsquo (an old fisherman in Chilia) But also images of the future are connected to a positive appreciation of lsquothe deltarsquo lsquoYes the Delta will stay and will bring touristsrsquo In these instances the nature protection discourse evoked by lsquodeltarsquo is in part appropriated by locals due to certain perceived advantages This partial appropriation leads on the one hand to a sustained ambiguity regarding the use of modernist ecological rhetoric and on the other hand to a positive re-evaluation of previously negative concepts like lsquobaltarsquo (cf Nelson 2005)

When we asked questions about the features of Delta or lsquobaltarsquo that people most appreciate the abundance of resources frequently recurred lsquoSo much fish so many birds [to eat]rsquo

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

172

Environmental Values 212

lsquoNaturersquo as a religious dimension to a utilitarian landscape

When asked directly about lsquonaturersquo responses feature generic references to landscape beauty often with a religious connotation especially among the Lipovan (Russian Orthodox old believer) fishermen lsquoThe beauty of the earth as God created itrsquo or lsquoThe beautiful delta Godrsquos favouritersquo The variegated wetland types distinguished by ecologists (Apostol et al 2005 Schneider 1990 Marin and Schneider 1997) are generally not recognised in categories of nature deployed by the villagers who generally distinguish many fewer kinds of wetland lsquoNaturersquo was not necessarily wild but appears in many conversations as referring to any type of place and landscape that is green and not associated with heavy labour

Nature in its positive manifestations is conceived in terms of productivity and beauty and in terms of size and splendour Rarely is the criterion of wildness evoked as significant to local people and nature is scarcely mentioned as a force in and of itself Nature as the web of relations between creatures (an ecosys-tem) is referred to only occasionally as exemplified by an older woman from Letea who remarks on lsquoall the birds and the fish and all of them living together therersquo Nature in its positive form is conceived as a place or a collection of places of great beauty This idea however cannot be reduced to a mere image (of place) because no concept can be reduced to an image or vice versa (Eco 1976 Ingold 2000) Rather the richness of sensory experience in the swamps captures the attention of many locals particularly when recollecting childhood memories Image sound scent are combined in a synaesthetic concept of place (and nature) that is overwhelming to the beholder An older woman from Sulina rhapsodises lsquothe sounds of the birds the frogs the scent of the mint the move-ment of reeds in the wind wonderfulrsquo A young female administrator in Tulcea imagines lsquohow you can just disappear there just listen and watchrsquo

Partial appropriation of a scientific nature concept

Local people are well aware that lsquonaturersquo attracts tourists to the delta and tourism can bring economic development Eco-tourism is often characterised specifically as an interest in birds lsquoTourists want to see the pelicansrsquo we often heard But in many cases eco-tourism is interpreted as an interest in the landscape of the delta lsquoThey come to see our beautiful delta a paradise on earthrsquo In this way landscape and birds and nature in general (fish-eating birds remoteness) can be transformed into potential income instead of being perceived as obstacles to income generation (a hope already resonating with Hall 1993) Some species stand more for lsquonaturersquo than others (cf Walpole and Leader-Williams 2002) One would expect that appreciations of nature and of the species symbolising nature are correlated and in the delta this is indeed the case In the Danube

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

173

Environmental Values 212

Delta arguably the richest birding area in Europe (Langeveld and Grimmett 1990 IUCN 1991 Green 1990 Grimmett and Jones 1989) and promoted as such for tourists birds did become symbolically important for the locals as did the fish that traditionally stood at the heart of human livelihoods (Stiuca and Nichersu 2006 Baboianu and Goriup 1995)

So both lsquodeltarsquo and lsquonaturersquo are perceived as embedded in conservation discourses that are largely alien but can still be partially appropriated People see nature conservation as reductive of spatial and cultural identity brought about by an imposed scientific discourse that is in turn hijacked by untrustwor-thy government officials and policy makers At the same time this distrusted lsquonature of the deltarsquo is seen by local people as offering a potential way out of impoverishment Villagers observe that ecological rhetoric favours fish and birds and conclude that they are the most important markers of scientifically constructed lsquonaturersquo Consequently ambiguities towards nature are primarily projected on these two animal groups

NON-HUMAN ACTORS BIRDS AND FISH

Discussing nature for many locals means discussing fish-eating birds and their protection lsquoNature Ah you want to talk about birdsrsquo declared an unemployed youngster in Sulina Conflicts between locals and governmental actors frequently revolve around the protection of species of fish-eating birds (Baboianu and Goriup 1995 Knight 2000 for a broader discussion) mainly pelicans (Pelecanus onocrotalus) and cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo carbo and Phalacrocorax pygmeus) lsquoCormorants destroy the fish they should be shot Whatrsquos this We protect them but punish people to starve to deathrsquo (fishermen focus group Chilia echoed in Vilkovo)

lsquoGood birds are birds you can eatrsquo is a frequently heard comment although this functional approach to bird species does not exclude a positive symbolic value as part of the local lsquonaturersquo Even some competing fish-eating birds can be appreciated for lsquotheir beautyrsquo and because lsquothey belong to the delta like all the other birdsrsquo (Vilkovo fishermen focus group) Cormorants are almost over-whelmingly described as nasty competitors that lsquoshould be shot or their eggs should be destroyedrsquo (Mila 23 fishermen) They are lsquouglyrsquo but a little later for the same people they can be lsquobeautiful since all birds are beautifulrsquo Pelicans feared even more as skilled fishing birds are nevertheless widely appreciated because of their beauty lsquothe way they fly in the evening light the way they fish in circlesrsquo ndash a Letea woman older ndash and lsquobecause the tourists want to see themrsquo The pelican is also widely recognised among locals as lsquothe symbol of the Deltarsquo (cf Garnett nd)

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

174

Environmental Values 212

The deep ambiguity attached to pelicans (very negative and very positive imagery) and overall negative images of cormorants are not just a consequence of resource competition Many other birds some of them present in large num-bers consume fish like gulls (Larus argentatus) egrets (Egretta alba Egretta gartzetta) herons (Ardea cinerea Ardea purpurea) terns (Sterna hirundo) and others Herons and gulls usually get a good press and are perceived as lsquosanitary birds that clean up the sickly fishrsquo (heard in Letea Chilia Mila 23) while egrets are beautiful and elegant ndash lsquoI just like the way it stands there Egrets are beautiful white slender and they donrsquot bother usrsquo explained a retired woman from Sulina

More than trade fishing has been the economic engine of the Danube Delta for centuries (East 1932 Gastescu 1993 1996) For the communist regime with all its ambitions of agricultural development fish was still considered the major asset In 1972 Panighiant stated that the Danube Delta lsquoprovides around 50 of the total amount of freshwater fish of Romaniarsquo (Panighiant 1972) Under communism fish polders and fish farms were built with the intention of doubling fish production typical for the communist discourse on the delta as a largely untapped vat of natural resources Ultimately the aquaculture opera-tions were not a big success due to oversized ponds inefficient management and poor infrastructure (Turnock 1986 Goriup 1994 Pons 1987 1988 Pons and Pons-Ghitulescu 1990)

Fish species are primarily regarded as resources as opposed to lsquonaturersquo Simultaneously the observed decline of diversity and quantity of fish shared by virtually all locals is commonly linked with environmental change lsquoIt used to be more natural So many fish everywherehelliprsquo (an older lady Sulina) Conservation efforts such as catch restrictions are not usually regarded as part of the solution The natural state of the Delta is nostalgically constructed as a situation with unlimited supplies of fish and no regulation The fish were lsquoa gift of Godrsquo (Mila 23 fishermen) part of a divinely ordained natural order taking these fish without regulation was part of that ordination

Whether a species is indigenous or not whether an exotic species is out-competing native fish is not considered important The Gibel carp (Carassius auratus gibelio) (see Navodaru et al 2001 Goriup 1994) an exotic introduced in the seventies caused a crash of native carp species because its feeding habits degraded the habitat for other species This led to a significant impoverishment of fish diversity but few locals deplore this situation An older fisherman from Chilia opined lsquoYes itrsquos new it did not used to be here And I still think sturgeon or zander tastes better but I like the taste of the gibel carp too itrsquos sweet and easy to catchrsquo

Fish and birds are the main actors in the local narrative of a delta that is declining losing its lsquonatural characterrsquo Simultaneously they are the main characters in a parallel story of overprotection But people also measure decline

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

175

Environmental Values 212

in terms of biodiversity loss and landscape change criteria borrowed from the very conservation discourse that is rejected in relation to the fishery

ATTRIBUTING CAUSES SCAPEGOATS

Local residents find these changes hard to explain There is a tendency for our informants to fall back on simple explanations Creating scapegoats is common practice in attempts to reduce complex patterns of causality to a single culprit (Bell 2005 Knight 2000) Removal of these culprits particularly cormorants is seen as providing ready solutions (Girard 1989) Certain actors cannot be blamed openly (concessionaires other locals) so locals turn either to lsquothe ecolo-gistsrsquo by which they mean the DDBRA and its wardens (Boja and Popescu 2000) lsquoBucharestrsquo meaning all larger interests that squander the resources of the Delta or more usually the comparatively proximate fish-eating birds

As far as we could ascertain these patterns of scapegoating became estab-lished only in the late nineties when the implications of the new conservation regime had fully dawned upon the villagers We argue that both scapegoating and partial appropriation of conservationist discourse can be attributed to the lack of a persuasive and coherent lsquoindigenousrsquo counter-discourse Alternative explana-tions were not available There has never been any strong form of cultural unity in the Danube Delta no shared narratives of history place and identity (Iordachi 2001 Van Assche et al 2009) Poor education and the absence of collective narratives made it much harder to respond to conservation narratives imposed by an alliance of science and bureaucracy that did have a birds-eye view of the delta (cf Scott and the visioning power of high modernist states Scott 1998)

Oscillation between discourses

Local residents routinely shift gears between various narratives on the delta between different concepts of nature featuring in those narratives Human actors animals and landscapes as discursive fragments become part of changing nar-rative frames Their appreciation changes accordingly Individual memories of older people reveal the importance of collective fish farming (Teampau and Van Assche 2009) but when these same people are asked about lsquothe deltarsquo a narrative emerges that erases the fish polders and reed cultures emphasising instead abundant fish and animal life the beauty of the waving lsquoseas of reedrsquo Locals use these idyllic images borrowed from conservationists to retaliate against them things were like that before they came

Several motives can be discerned for such oscillation between selected memories commodification of nature with the eye on tourism development a desire to forget the traumatic history of communism and the recent history of

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

176

Environmental Values 212

changing governance all play their part That last motive the history of conflicts over the governance of the delta emerged as dominant We observed frequently how people moved nimbly between different sets of placenature concepts when encountering controversy People can fulminate against the lsquodamn cormorantsrsquo next the lsquodamn ecologistsrsquo protecting them and right after that declare the delta a paradise on earth and whisper that lsquothe cormorant is also kind of beautiful because all birds are beautifulrsquo ndashan older Chilia fisherman We argue that this combination of volatile discursive strategies ambiguity and polarisation is typical for nature concepts marked by collective trauma

CONFLICT TRAUMA AND NATURE

In the Danube Delta environmental perceptions and experiences have been shaped by impacts of disempowerment marginalisation and stigmatisation Very few people believe they can do anything to improve their situation Few think that organising themselves could make any real difference or indeed that they bear any responsibility to do so lsquoWhy even talk about this What difference does it make Just go to the villages take a look talk to people and yoursquoll see that nothingrsquos going to changersquo a young entrepreneur in Tulcea asserts vigorously echoing voices of youngsters in Sulina ndash lsquono use staying here No things will not improve we have to get out find a way to get out have a planrsquo

Marginality

Under communism the image of the delta in the rest of Romania was tainted to such an extent that the totalitarian regime had great difficulty in recruiting people both workers and engineers for its land reclamation projects (interviews) while only the poorest elements in Romanian society were willing to migrate to the delta for work on reed cultivation projects (Bell 2005) An unforgiving environment a prevailing imagery of lsquothe end of the worldrsquo as well as the exist-ence of large prison camps during in the 1960s and 1970s and a proximity to a contested border with Ukraine made it unattractive to most Romanians A retired Romanian researcher remembers lsquoThe Delta was a scary place for Romanians This was not a place you wanted to end up unless you were desperatersquo

Since independence successive Romanian regimes regarded the multi-ethnic character of the delta with suspicion (Iordachi 2002) For the inhabitants of the delta distance from the centre deprived them of certain benefits such as investments in public utilities but it also granted them a degree of freedom from official scrutiny that was appreciated (Van Assche et al 2009 Teampau and Van Assche 2009) Conversely the marginality of the locals was and is firmly

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

177

Environmental Values 212

embedded in the minds of regional and national elites and policy-makers lsquoBring booze you donrsquot need money therersquo several civil servants in Tulcea counselled us

Disempowerment

Since the inception of the DDBRA and the transformation of DDNI (the re-search institute) in 1990 lack of attention to the interests of locals in the Delta has been a subject of criticism Despite a long list of affirmations on the part of DDBRA and of regional and national government that locals should benefit from all new plans and policies scientific observers as well as donor organisations (Apostol et al 2005 Bell et al 2001 2005 IUCN 1991 1992 Baboianu and Goriup 1995 Stiuca and Nichersu 2006) feel the need to return to the issue over and over again

Local people share the conviction that all valuable fish species are channelled quickly out of the region often via the black market and the well-connected concessionaires while locals are punished for catching a meagre carp with the wrong net lsquoThey came and took my nets Can you imaginersquo an older Chilia fisherman sighed Locals feel discriminated by prohibitions relating to hunting and fishing and by the granting of concessions lsquoWe eat fish and we will starve otherwise You know the Danube has been granted as if it belonged to someonersquos father or motherrsquo ndash Chilia fishermen focus group

Traumatic nature as the outcome of a process in a context

In the Danube Delta trauma through communism moulded narratives of place and self (Van Assche et al 2008 Teampau and Van Asssche 2009) More than this however the recent history of conflict over natural resource governance shaped local concepts of nature and the strategic deployment of narratives The context of conflicts over governance has contributed more than anything else to the present diversity and deployment of lsquonaturersquo

Under traumatic nature concepts and narratives of nature are marked by lega-cies of disempowerment and marginality In the Danube Delta an exclusionary shift in governance in an already marginal context produced such a particularly unstable discursive environment Lacking the possibility of formulating and deploying a locally grounded counter-discourse a partial appropriation of con-servationist rhetoric emerges The result is highly volatile deeply ambiguous and extremely polarised People move quickly between differing narratives concepts and envisioned futures Human and non-human actors are invested with rapidly shifting emotions

Our analysis of process (a restructuring of governance felt as unfair) out-come (traumatic nature) and context (the history of marginality) demonstrates how the process itself contributed significantly to the local features of traumatic

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

178

Environmental Values 212

nature We have already adumbrated the reasons for the predominant feeling of disempowerment Here we would like to underline the connections between a disempowering process and the discursive production of traumatic nature

The shift in governance in the Danube Delta established an institutional exception in Romania by asserting the unique dominance of green discourses in politics and administration New encounters with green policies proved as invasive as communist development policies with the difference that employ-ment and development were in practice now off the agenda Various actors professed green goals but local residents did not see them implemented This aggravated existing suspicion of bureaucrats scientists and of conservation discourse Meetings officially aimed at participation and proclaimed efforts at sustainable development were perceived locally as pro-forma obligations to international actors

In this situation of privatised collective assets and stigmatisation of tradi-tional resource use the only discourse available to locals that offered some prospect of success was the discourse of the lsquoecologistsrsquo In other words they were forced to enter the discourse of the enemy Such effort at re-capturing and undermining the powers of opposing discourse could not silence the trauma however Ambiguity remained and this incomplete silencing we argue causes the instability in local discourse on nature and place

When encountering governmental actors or scientists suspected to be with the lsquoecologistsrsquo the discursive volatility increases Anxiety resistance resent-ment disempowerment and local pride lack a clear frame to be articulated in and integrate in a conservationist discourse that is only half trusted as a weapon of resistance and a tool for self-improvement Fragments of older delta narra-tives reinvented traditions and newly fabricated oppositional concepts emerge sporadically without producing coherent narratives

CONCLUDING IMPLICATIONS FOR THE GOVERNANCE OF NATURE

The presence of traumatic nature is bound to have implications for the govern-ance of nature Trust in administration in scientists in participatory governance will be too low to allow for real participation when the opportunity does arise Transparency effective deliberation and negotiation can be barely envisioned in absence of trust This is true in the Danube Delta and we believe it is true anywhere else

There is no generic strategy to erase the negative consequences of traumatic nature We do believe that increased reflexivity the equivalent of anamnese is a prerequisite for any successful local strategy (Gunder and Hillier 2009) Overcoming trauma requires awareness of the trauma itself its causes It requires

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

179

Environmental Values 212

an understanding of governance as a potential source of trauma Thus in order to identify the obstacles for participatory governance in the presence of traumatic nature it is imperative for a scientist to scrutinise her own assumptions (Antze and Lambek 1996)

One harmful assumption is that participatory governance for nature con-servation can be a neutral frame where different images concepts narratives can be juxtaposed Yes this would allow for easy deliberation (Keulartz et al 2004 OrsquoRiordan 2002 and Stringer et al 2006 for critiques) But as the case of the Danube Delta and many other cases have shown governance structures and processes can produce these narratives (Latour 2004 Fischer 2000 Van Assche 2001) so common grounds can crumble as soon as they are found (Hajer and Wagenaar 2003 Stringer et al 2006 and already Foucault)

Process design cannot be considered the master key to remediating deficits of knowledge or power with participants Rational calculations do not determine strategy in the presence of traumatic nature This makes actors more unpredict-able increasing uncertainty (cf Pellizzoni 2003 Latour 2004) And who should design the participation process No actor especially no governmental actor can a priori be considered a neutral party and a credible restorer of trust (cf Flyvbjerg 1998 Hillier 2002)

One needs to establish the causes of trauma before any prescription makes sense On a positive note our analysis also implies that very dysfunctional processes can be unstuck the trauma can unravel quickly when slowly exposed (cf Zizek 1990)

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Apostol M M Cernea et al 2005 GEF Romania Danube Delta Bioconservation Project Local Benefits Analysis Stockholm Stockholm Environmental Institute

Baboianu G and P Goriup (eds) 1995 Management Objectives Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Gland IUCN

Bal M 2002 Travelling Concepts New Haven Yale University PressBelacurencu T 2007 lsquoImplementation of ecological policies in the Danube Deltarsquo

Theoretical and Applied Economics 4(4) 9ndash27Bell S (ed) 2004 IMEW Integrated Management of European Wetlands Final Report

Durham Durham UniversityBell S I Nichersu et al 2001 lsquoConservation versus livelihood in the Danube Deltarsquo

Anthropology of East Europe Review 19(1)

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180

Environmental Values 212

Bell S and H Reinert 2009 lsquoOn the outside looking in Biodiversity and the algebra of lifersquo in MESS and RAMSES II Mediterranean Ethnological Summer School 7 pp 327ndash342 Ljubljana University of Ljubljana Press

Boja V and I Popescu 2000 lsquoSocial ecology in the Danube Delta theory and practicersquo Lakes and Reservoirs Research and Management 5(2) 125ndash131

Buijs A 2009 lsquoLay peoplersquos images of nature comprehensive frameworks of values beliefs and value orientationsrsquo Society and Natural Resources 22 417ndash432

DDBRA 2000 Public Participation and Commnunication Strategy Tulcea Romania DDBRA

De Jong J and B Schultz 1982 lsquoDe ontwikkeling van de Donau Deltarsquo Cultuurtechnisch tijdschrift 22(2) 43ndash56

Descola Ph And G Palsson (eds) 1996 Nature and Society Anthropological Perspectives London Routledge

Descola Ph 2005 Par de- la nature et culture Paris GallimardDumitrescu A 2005 lsquoImplementation of social assistant system in the Danube Delta

localitiesrsquo Scientific annals of the Danube Delta Institute 11 35ndash46East W 1932 lsquoThe Danube Route-way in historyrsquo Economica 37 321ndash345Eco U 1976 A Theory of Semiotics Bloomington University of Indiana PressEllen R and K Fukui (eds) 1996 Redefining Nature Ecology Culture and Domestication

Oxford BergEuroconsult IUCN 1993 EBRD draft inception report technical cooperation project

(Danube Delta) Gland EuroconsultIUCNFischer F 2000 Citizens Experts and the Environment The Politics of Local Knowledge

Durham Duke University PressFlyvbjerg B 1998 Rationality and Power Chicago University of Chicago PressFoucault M 1968 Les mots et les choses Paris GallimardFoucault M 1975 Surveiller et punir Paris GallimardGalatchi L 2009 lsquoEnvironmental management of intentional or accidental environmental

threats to water security in the Danube Deltarsquo in J Jones T Vardanian and C Hakopian (eds) Threats to Global Water Security pp 305ndash315 Dordrecht Springer

Garnett M (nd) Preliminary Solutions for the Coexistence of Fisheries and Pelicans in the Danube Delta Preliminary Report IUCNWWF Project No 3139

Gastescu P 1993 lsquoThe Danube delta Geographical characteristics and ecological recoveryrsquo GeoJournal 29 57ndash67

Gastescu P 1996 lsquoThe Danube delta biosphere reserve Present state and managementrsquo Revue Roumaine de Geographie 40 27ndash33

Girard R 1989 The Scapegoat Baltimore Johns Hopkins University PressGlacken CJ 1967 Traces on the Rhodian Shore Nature and Culture in Western Thought

from the Ancient World to the End of the Eighteenth Century Berkeley University of California Press

Goriup P 1994 lsquoBiodiversity ecological investment and sustainable development in the Danube delta biosphere reserve Romaniarsquo Ecos 14 45ndash51

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Green R 1990 The Ornithological Importance of the Danube Delta and Lake Razelm-Sinoie Draft prepared for international mission 1990

Grimmett R and T Jones 1989 Important Bird Areas in Europe Cambridge International Council for Bird Preservation (ICBP)

Gunder M and J Hillier 2009 Planning in Ten Words or Less A Lacanian Entanglement with Planning Aldershot Ashgate

Hajer M and M Wagenaar 2003 Deliberative Policy Analysis Governance in the Network Society Cambridge Cambridge University Press

Hillier J 2002 Shadows of Power London RoutledgeHall D 1993 lsquoEco tourism in the Danube Deltarsquo Tourism Review 48(3) 11ndash13Ingold T 2000 The Perception of the Environment Essays on Dwelling Livelihood

and Skill London RoutledgeIordachi C 2002 Citizenship Nation and State-Building The Integration of Northern

Dobrogea in Romania 1878ndash1913 Pittsburgh University of Pittsburgh PressIUCN 1986 MAB Information System Biosphere Reserves Compilation October 1986

Prepared for UNESCO Gland IUCN IUCN 1991 World Heritage Nomination ndash IUCN Summary Danube Delta Biosphere

Reserve Gland IUCN IUCN (L Pons ed) 1992 The Danube Delta Conservation Status Report Gland IUCNKepe T 1997 lsquoCommunities entitlements and nature reserves the case of the wild

coast South Africarsquo IDS Bulletin 1ndash13Keulartz J H Van der Windt and J Swart 2004 lsquoConcepts of nature as communicative

devices The case of Dutch nature policyrsquo Environmental Values 13(1) 81ndash99Knight 2000 Natural Enemies People-Wildlife Conflicts in Anthropological Perspective

London RoutledgeLangeveld M and R Grimmett (eds) 1990 Important Bird Areas in Europe Wetlands

for the Shadow List of Ramsar Sites Cambridge International Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Bureau

Latour N 2004 The Politics of Nature How to Bring the Sciences into Democracy Cambridge Harvard University Press

Mannigel 2008 lsquoIntegrating parks and people how does participation work in protected area managementrsquo Society and Natural Resources 21(6) 498ndash511

Marin G and E Schneider 1997 Ecological Restoration in the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Romania Tulcea DDBRAWWF

Navodaru I and M Staras 1998 lsquoConservation of fish stocks in the Danube Delta Romania Present status constraints and recommendationrsquo Italian Journal for Zoology 65(1) 369ndash371

Navodaru I M Staras and I Cernisencu 2001 lsquoThe challenge of sustainable use of the Danube Delta Fisheries Romaniarsquo Fisheries Management and Ecology 8(4ndash5) 323ndash332

Nelson V 2005 lsquoRepresentation and images of people place and nature in Grenadarsquos tourismrsquo Geografiska Annaler B 87(2) 131ndash143

KRISTOF VAN ASSCHE et al

182

Environmental Values 212

OrsquoRiordan T 2002 lsquoProtecting beyond the protectedrsquo in T OrsquoRiordan S Stoll-Kleemann (eds) Biodiversity Human Livelihoods and Sustainability pp 3ndash32 Cambridge Cambridge University Press

OrsquoRiordan T and S Stoll-Kleemann (eds) 2002 Biodiversity Human Livelihoods and Sustainability Cambridge Cambridge University Press

Ostrom E 1990 Governing the Commons the Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action Cambridge Cambridge University Press

Panighiant E1972 Le Delta du Danube Bucharest Editions Touristiques Pellizzoni L 2003 lsquoUncertainty and participatory democracyrsquo Environmental Values

12 195ndash224Pons L 1987 Recent Information about the Present Ecological State of the Danube

Delta and Future Threats by Agricultural Developments Report (np) Pons L 1988 A Visit to the Danube Delta (19thndash22nd October 1988) Report (np) Pons L and M Pons-Ghitulescu 1990 The Recent Developments Around the Danube

Report (np) Schiemer F 2006 lsquoEcological status and problems of the Danube and its fish faunarsquo

Proceedings of the 36th IAD Conference Vienna IAD Schneider E 1990 lsquoDie auen im einzugsgebiet der unteren Donaursquo Arbeit des

internationals Auen symposium 1987 beim WWF Auen Institut Rastatt Laufen ANL Scott J 1998 Seeing Like a State New Haven Yale University PressSouleacute M and G Lease 1995 Reinventing Nature Responses to Postmodern

Deconstruction Washington Island PressStiuca R and I Nichersu 2006 lsquoMaster Plan ndash support for sustainable development

in Danube Delta Biosphere ReserveTulcea county (Romania) Logical Framework Analysis (LFA) Proceedings of the 36th IAD conference Vienna IAD

Stringer L A Dougill E Fraser K Hubacek C Prell and M Reed 2006 lsquoUnpacking ldquoparticipationrdquo in the adaptive management of social ecological systems A critical reviewrsquo Ecology and Society 11(2)

Stringer L S Scrieciu and M Reed 2009 lsquoBiodiversity land degradation and climate change participatory planning in Romaniarsquo Applied Geography 29(1) 77ndash90

Teampau P and K Van Assche 2009 lsquoSulina Sulina when therersquos water therersquos no light Memory and autobiography in a Romanian townrsquo Identities 7(1ndash2) 33ndash70

Turnhout E 2004 lsquoThe role of views of nature in Dutch nature conservation The case of the creation of a drift sand area in the Hoge Veluwe National Parkrsquo Environmental Values 13(2) 187ndash198

Turnock D 1986 The Romanian Economy in the 20th Century New York St Martinrsquos PressUNEP World Conservation Monitoring Center 2009 Danube Delta Romania UNEP

[Online httpwwwunep-wcmcorgsiteswhpdfDanube20Deltapdf]UNESCO-MAB 1998 Biosphere Reserves Directory Biosphere Reserve Information

Danube Delta UNESCOVan Assche K 2001 Images of Nature and Urbanization Report for the Dutch Ministry

of Environment and Agriculture (report for lsquoNatuurverkenningen 2002rsquo in Dutch)

TraumaTic NaTures of The swamp

183

Environmental Values 212

Van Assche K 2004 Signs in Time An Interpretive Account of Urban Planning and Design the People and their Histories Wageningen Wageningen University

Van Assche K and P Teampau 2009 lsquoLayered encounters Performance of multiculturalism and urban palimpsest at the ldquogateway of Europerdquorsquo Anthropology of East Europe Review 27(1) 7ndash19

Van Assche K P Teampau P Devlieger and C Suciu 2008 lsquoLiquid boundaries in marginal marshes Reconstructions of identity in the Danube Deltarsquo Studia Sociologia 24(3) 110ndash129

Van Assche K P Devlieger P Teampau and G Verschraegen 2009 lsquoForgetting and remembering in the marginConstructing past and future in the Romanian Danube Deltarsquo Memory Studies 2(2) 211ndash234

Walpole M and N Leader-Williams 2002 lsquoTourism and flagship species in conservationrsquo Biodiversity and Conservation 11 543ndash547

West P 2006 Conservation is Our Government Now the Politics of Ecology in Papua New Guinea Durham Duke University Press

World Bank 1994 Danube Delta Biodiversity Project Project Document Washington World Bank

World Bank 2005 Project Performance Assessment Report Danube Delta Biodiversity Project Washington World Bank (nr 32684)

Zizek S 1990 The Sublime Object of Ideology London Verso