HIDROELECTRICIDAD Y CIUDAD

Represas y proyectos urbanos en la Patagonia

Abstract

Between the 1940s and 1990s, and as part of developmentalist policies, a series of hydroelectric dams were built in Argentine Patagonia. They deeply transformed the sites and basins where they were located and the demographic growth brought about by its construction had an urban correlate that was evident in three different types of settlements: temporary encampments to house workers and technicians during the construction, new towns for the families of the dam staff and, finally, new towns erected to relocate those affected by the reservoirs. The purpose of this paper is to examine a series of projects linked to these three different types of settlement, construct their history, characterize their layouts and reflect on the urban planning ideas behind their layouts. The selected cases are limited to the so-called Comahue region where most of the dams were built.