Multidimensional and multitemporal energy injustices: Exploring the downstream impacts of the Belo Monte hydropower dam in the Amazon

Energy transition technologies, such as hydroelectric dams, have been seen as symbols of progress, cheap energy, environmental sustainability, and resource abundance, leading to overestimating their benefits and underestimating their drawbacks. In this study, we use the tenets approach of energy justice and a qualitative case study to explore, from a multidimensional and multitemporal perspective, the impacts faced by the inhabitants of a community located downstream from the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam in Brazil. Through observations and in-depth interviews with fishers, data were collected at three points: during the late stage of construction (2016) and early operation (2017, 2019). We found that individuals confront multiple and diverse energy injustices at various stages of dam construction, and perceptions of their severity change over time. Thus, we show how the multidimensional and multitemporal perspectives are intertwined and point to the need for further multitemporal studies to better understand the impacts of energy transition efforts on communities.