This thesis investigates the relationship between the Viequenses, the U.S. government, the land, and the law on Vieques from 1979-2012 to illustrate how ecological empire is enacted and contested on the island of Vieques. I argue, that imperial ecology is enacted when a distant and overarching hegemon, in this case the U.S. government, controls the access, use, and management of land and sea through institutional channels in order to advance national priorities of defense and security. In Vieques, the authority of the Navy on the island represented a direct and explicit expression of U.S. military empire and expansion. However, the consequences of the restrictions of land on the island, and the lasting imprint on the land left by the Navy constitute a more subtle and deceptive transnational process of what I term as “imperial ecology.” Chapter One investigates the 1978 fishermen’s struggle for livelihood rights on Vieques to illustrate how the Viequenses framed their grievances in terms of livelihood and land—and sea—and how these grievances became amplified and dispersed as Puerto Rican political actors and radical activists became involved in the struggle. Chapter Two explores the transfer of former bases lands in 2003, unveiling the tensions and contradictions implicit in the overlapping designations of Wildlife Refuge and Superfund site on the island. Chapter Three investigates the 2007 class action lawsuit filed by a collective of over 7,000 Viequenses to demonstrate how the Viequenses perceive the mechanisms of imperial ecology on their island, and how these perceptions diverge from the Navy’s understanding of its action on the island. / acase@tulane.edu

This written thesis is a companion to a 30-minute documentary video of the same title. The documentary is a presentation of the historical conflict between the United States Navy and the people of the island of Vieques, Puerto Rico. For over 60 years the island was used by the United States Navy as a military training facility. The documentary attempts to present an analysis of the struggle between citizens of the island and the Navy. This written component presents a summarized history of Puerto Rico, Vieques and the conflict with the United States Navy. In addition, the preproduction, production and post-production process of the documentary are discussed. A theoretical analysis of the filmmaker's approach and technique are addressed and analyzed as well. The thesis's goal is to provide a clear understanding of the Vieques conflict to United States audiences who do not a familiarity with the topic. The thesis is presented from the perspective of a person who grew up in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico has been a United States territory since 1898. Since then, our identity and culture has been threatened by the impositions of the colonizer. The so-called “identity crisis” caused by the relationship with the U.S. government, is felt not only at a personal level, but also in our economy, politics and sociability. With the theme Decolonizing Architecture I explore our condition of colony, the struggles of the Puerto Rican people in favor of our emancipation and the role of architecture and memory to transcend our insular circumstance. My thesis focuses on the island of Vieques, a Puerto Rican Municipality that was invaded in 1941 by the U.S. Navy. The navy expropriated 2/3 of the island. The East was used as a weapons training facility and the West for ammunition storage. The Viequense community, of approximately 10,000 inhabitants, was left in the middle of training zones for war. In 2003, after more than five decades of relentless bombings and the many protests and civil disobedience acts against it from the local community, Puerto Ricans from the main island and in the diaspora, the navy withdrew from Vieques. Currently the previous Live Impact Area on the East side of Vieques is inaccessible due to cleanup from contamination but the land can be used to provide a renewable source of energy that would benefit the municipality. The intervention in the West is located on the former Naval Ammunition Storage Detachment where hundreds of abandoned bunkers are located. These bunkers will be rehabilitated to promote eco-tourism, to provide a space in memory of those who have died at the hands of the navy, and to commemorate Vieques’ triumph. The design proposal is my approach on how to return the land to the community. With this thesis I intend to recognize the collective memory of a people who are still struggling to control their destiny. We should never forget how the Viequenses got together and fought to defend their land and their dignity against the most powerful military in the world; in hopes that the rest of Puerto Ricans can someday understand Vieques as the beggining of the end of colonization.

Puerto Rico has been a United States territory since 1898. Since then, our identity and culture has been threatened by the impositions of the colonizer. The so-called “identity crisis” caused by the relationship with the U.S. government, is felt not only at a personal level, but also in our economy, politics and sociability. With the theme Decolonizing Architecture I explore our condition of colony, the struggles of the Puerto Rican people in favor of our emancipation and the role of architecture and memory to transcend our insular circumstance. My thesis focuses on the island of Vieques, a Puerto Rican Municipality that was invaded in 1941 by the U.S. Navy. The navy expropriated 2/3 of the island. The East was used as a weapons training facility and the West for ammunition storage. The Viequense community, of approximately 10,000 inhabitants, was left in the middle of training zones for war. In 2003, after more than five decades of relentless bombings and the many protests and civil disobedience acts against it from the local community, Puerto Ricans from the main island and in the diaspora, the navy withdrew from Vieques. Currently the previous Live Impact Area on the East side of Vieques is inaccessible due to cleanup from contamination but the land can be used to provide a renewable source of energy that would benefit the municipality. The intervention in the West is located on the former Naval Ammunition Storage Detachment where hundreds of abandoned bunkers are located. These bunkers will be rehabilitated to promote eco-tourism, to provide a space in memory of those who have died at the hands of the navy, and to commemorate Vieques’ triumph. The design proposal is my approach on how to return the land to the community. With this thesis I intend to recognize the collective memory of a people who are still struggling to control their destiny. We should never forget how the Viequenses got together and fought to defend their land and their dignity against the most powerful military in the world; in hopes that the rest of Puerto Ricans can someday understand Vieques as the beggining of the end of colonization.

This paper assesses the continued community participation mechanisms, especially the Restoration Advisory Board, and the role of these mechanisms in the environmental cleanup of post U.S. military training operations in the current colonial situation of the Puerto Rican island municipality of Vieques. Today the community has many informal and formal mechanisms of organization meant to address the social, economic, health and environmental problems resulting from the Navy's presence on the island. These mechanisms are the cornerstone of the community's search for social and environmental justice. This paper provides a brief history of the Navy's presence on Vieques, the evolution of community participation mechanisms and an analysis of how these mechanisms allow the community to interact with public, private and government institutions involved in the cleanup. The research is centered around interviews with community members to discern whether they feel these mechanisms are effective in properly addressing community concerns. The case study of Vieques could also have international implications for the future of foreign military bases and toxic waste disposal around the world. Analysis of the effectiveness of community participation mechanisms could help marginalized communities deal with developed countries on issues that may concern human health and environmental risks as a result of the developed countries' activities. The analysis of community participation mechanisms can be used as a guide for Vieques and other communities around the world trying to achieve social, economic and environmental justice.

This research focused on the use of nanoscale zero-valent iron (NZVI) to remediate trinitrotoluene (TNT). Zero-valent iron has demonstrated effective degradation of TNT, however, these particles themselves have significant problems in treating sorbed phase TNT in the aerobic environment. This research was comprised of four areas: degradation studies of neat nano-iron with aqueous TNT, degradation studies of nanoiron emulsion with aqueous TNT, characterization of TNT in Vieques, Puerto Rico sediment, and Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) technique interface with HPLC. Both neat and emulsion NZVI studies showed TNT degradation. More degradation was seen in studies using fresher iron. The results from our characterization study in Vieques, PR showed no presence of TNT within our detection limits of 0.0625ppm. Also, SPME is a new extraction solvent saving technique being explored because of its reproducible extractions in water. This work also gives a brief history of SPME and possible uses with TNT.

After sixty-two years of U.S. military testing, the small Puerto Rican island of Vieques and its residents continue to fight against ongoing environmental and social effects of U.S. hegemony. Starting with the arrival of the Spanish, then with U.S. occupation and use of Vieques as a military stopover, Viequense residents are used to U.S. governmental presence on their land. Despite the military’s removal from Vieques in 2003, many local residents have a fundamental lack of trust for the U.S. government. Because of this lack of trust and transparency with U.S. governmental actions in the post- World War II period, residents of Vieques do not see any difference between the USFWS, the EPA, CH2M Hill, and the U.S. Navy. However, many acknowledge that the U.S. government’s involvement may be good for the island, so there is some ambivalence about the U.S. government’s continued presence on the island, its role in developing Vieques, and bettering its current economic situation. While the majority of local activists claim that naval activities negatively affected island life through contamination of land and surrounding waters, also resulting in a range of human health problems, others argue that the U.S. Navy should not be demonized, and the island’s role in conservation should be paramount. These differing views reflect two opposing frameworks: one fighting against a colonizer and U.S. hegemony, and the other promoting a primarily conservation-based framework meant to protect non-human residents.