Sacrifice zones exemplify how environmental injustice becomes structurally reproduced through governance arrangements, institutional logics, and policy practices that prioritize economic or political imperatives over social-ecological well-being. Rather than being temporary or accidental outcomes, these zones emerge as durable configurations where environmental harm is normalized, justified, or strategically tolerated. They reveal how environmental degradation is embedded within governance systems themselves, through decisions, omissions, and regulatory deferrals that perpetuate unequal exposure to risk and vulnerability. This research examines how these mechanisms operate within and across different governance contexts. Drawing on Critical Realism and second-generation Environmental Justice, it approaches sacrifice zones as social-ecological systems structured by power relations and institutional dependencies. This perspective makes it possible to identify not only the visible consequences of environmental harm, but also the deeper causal mechanisms that stabilize them over time. By focusing on the interplay between governance rationalities, policy frameworks, and social-ecological processes, the doctoral project situates sacrifice zones within broader debates on environmental justice, resilience, and territorial governance.

Methodologically, the study combines qualitative document analysis, reflexive thematic coding, and spatial inquiry to trace how governance mechanisms justify, defer, or obscure responsibility for environmental degradation. A comparative research design between Chile and Italy allows for the analysis of two distinct yet converging governance regimes, each marked by industrial contamination, policy fragmentation, and contested notions of development. Despite their institutional differences, both cases illustrate how sacrifice zones are sustained through the normalization of risk, the marginalization of affected communities, and the persistence of extractive or industrial dependencies. Through this multi-scalar and interdisciplinary approach, the research aims to advance understanding of how governance systems reproduce environmental injustice and to contribute conceptual and empirical insights toward more equitable and adaptive spatial planning practices.