Experts versus the Public: Perceptions of Siting Wind Turbines and Performance Concerns (original) (raw)
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Visual preferences for wind turbines: Location, numbers and respondent characteristics
Applied Energy, 2012
There is a dichotomy in the view of wind farms among members of the public: on one hand, there is a desire for renewable energy sources, and on the other hand, there is a major concern about the visual impact of wind turbines used for power production. This concern for visual impact is a major factor in the reaction of the public to the development of new wind farms. Our study aims to objectify this influence and to establish the factors that determine how people evaluate these structures. We tested the visual quality of landscapes in which these structures are to be placed, the number of structures and their distance from the viewer, and various characteristics of our respondents. We found that the physical attributes of the landscape and wind turbines influenced the respondents' reactions far more than socio-demographic and attitudinal factors. One of the most important results of our study is the sensitivity of respondents to the placement of wind turbines in landscapes of high aesthetic quality, and, on the other hand, a relatively high level of acceptance of these structures in unattractive landscapes. Wind turbines also receive better acceptance if the number of turbines in a landscape is limited, and if the structures are kept away from observation points, such as settlements, transportation infrastructure and viewpoints. The most important characteristic of the respondents that influenced their evaluation was their attitude to wind power. On the basis of these results, recommendations are presented for placing wind turbines and for protecting the character of the landscape within the planning and policy making processes.
Hungarian Journal of Landscape Ecology, 2017
This paper provides new empirical evidence on the hypothesis that the perception of landscape disruption by wind turbines is a substantially subjective and relative matter. It is based on a survey involving nearly five hundred residents living in six different locations with operational wind turbines in the Czech Republic. Geographical and socioeconomic factors and sociodemographic characteristics that affect local community perceptions of landscape disruption are explored using correlations and a regression analysis model. The results suggest that the expressed perception of landscape disruption is not determined by the number of existing wind turbines, the proximity of residences to them and their visibility from the home but is significantly affected by the perception of the economic favourability of projects (benefits to local communities), perception of other negative impacts of wind turbines (particularly the noise annoyance) and the socio-cultural background of people (particularly the level of education).
Having a Wind Turbine in the Viewshed or Not: Cumulative Effects of Existing On-Land Wind Turbines
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000
Presently, on-land wind turbine densities are increasing in many countries and with an expected rise in local resistance. However, despite that the "crowding" of wind turbines in especially the urban fringe and in more densely populated rural areas, few studies have to date analysed the cumulative effects of wind turbines on the social acceptance of wind power. We shed light on this issue and find that the attitude towards increasing the on-land wind power capacity in Denmark is significantly influenced by the number of turbines people see on a daily basis. Most strikingly, we find that this effect is conditional on having a wind turbine in the viewshed from the permanent or summer residence.
Public receptiveness of vertical axis wind turbines
Energy Policy, 2018
Most of the scholarly focus to date has been on large horizontal axis rather than vertical axis wind turbines. It may be possible to improve the efficiency of vertical axis wind technology by deploying turbines in clusters. There might also be advantages to deploying vertical axis turbines at a smaller scale in urban or suburban areas and in places where the risk of bird damage is highest. Would these features increase public acceptance of new wind turbine installations and possibly open up new areas for wind energy development? We conducted a public opinion poll in California to examine public receptiveness. We used experimental design to assess the willingness to accept vertical axis turbines in certain urban settings. We find that the visual differences between the vertical and conventional wind turbines did not matter very much in any of the hypothetical settings in which we placed them. However, the prospect of killing fewer birds registered strongly with our survey respondents, though it could be outweighed by concern for cost. We also show that certain segments of the population, particularly those who are more educated, may be open to a more extensive deployment of vertical axis turbines in urban communities.
Energy for Sustainable Development, 2020
To counteract the threat of global warming, many nations have resorted to increasing their use of renewable energy sources, wind farms being among the most popular. The greatest obstacle when it comes to the acceptance of wind farms is their visual impact. Recently, tourism has become Iceland's largest export sector, the country's natural landscape being the main attraction for visitors. This paper attempts to compare the perception of residents and tourists towards wind energy production in general and towards Iceland's first proposed wind farm, to be located at the edge of the country's uninhabited interior Central Highlands. The study is based on a questionnaire survey conducted among residents living adjacent to the proposed wind farm and among tourists travelling through the proposed area. The results indicate that residents are more positive than tourists towards wind turbines and consider them less intrusive in the landscape. Hence, the location of Iceland's first wind farm at the main gateway into the country's Central Highlands is problematic and likely to disturb the experience of tourists passing through the area. Despite the wealth of wind in Iceland it might be challenging to utilize it for energy production due to the importance of nature-based tourism for the economy. If Iceland becomes a physical exporter of renewable energy, it may be expected that more pressure will be set on the construction of wind farms. Thereby nature-based tourism and wind energy would be in direct competition over land use.
Public Attitudes and Participation in Wind Turbine Development
Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management, 2009
Research for this paper was undertaken into the relationship between public opinion on wind power and public participation in turbine site planning and design. The research focussed on the contribution of environmental attitude studies to participatory environmental impact assessment of renewable energy policy and land use. A questionnaire survey was undertaken at wind farm sites at three stages in the site planning process and at three public events where the application of wind power was a topic of discussion. The attitudinal data produced was subjected to a series of statistical tests to determine which of the attitudes revealed could be quantified significantly in terms of public opinion. The most significant responses related to the proximity of wind turbines to respondents' homes with the proposition that wind turbine designers should seek community input of the highest significance. Respondents also indicated a preference for traditional turbine structures that blended in...
Public attitudes and community participation in wind farm construction
increasing in light of governmental promotion of renewable energy to protect the environment by reducing reliance on fossil fuels and carbon dioxide emissions. However, communities and lobby groups fiercely debated the appropriateness of wind power. This thesis therefore was proposed to assesses the scope of public perception and participation within wind farm development. Multidisciplinary qualitative and quantitative approaches of environmental psychology, environmental sociology, land-use planning, design aesthetics, and sustainable development were used to do this.
Attitudes of U.S. Wind Turbine Neighbors: Analysis of a Nationwide Survey
Energy Policy
Experts predict continuing deployment of wind turbines in the United States, which will create more interactions between turbines and surrounding communities. Policymakers can benefit from analyses of existing wind projects that enable them to better understand likely effects on residents around proposed projects. Our analysis of a randomly drawn, representative national survey of 1705 existing U.S. wind project neighbors provides previously unavailable detail about factors influencing the attitudes of these neighbors toward their local wind projects. Overall, we find positive-leaning attitudes, which improve over time as individuals self-select into communities near existing wind projects. Hearing wind turbines leads to less-positive attitudes, although living very near to turbines does not, nor does seeing wind turbines. In fact, our findings suggest complex relationships among nearby residents' attitudes, their perceptions about the particular fit of turbines within their landscape and community, and their perceptions of wind project impacts on property values. These findings-along with the positive correlation between perceived planning-process fairness and attitude-suggest areas of focus for wind project development that may influence social outcomes and acceptance of wind energy. The concluding discussion provides a number of policy and future research recommendations based on the research.
Preparing the ground: Regulatory challenges in siting small-scale wind turbines in urban areas
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2017
Countries worldwide have set national targets for energy production from renewable sources. Yet, while many governments are committed to more renewable energy, obtaining permission to site installations is becoming increasingly difficult. With large tracts of land for renewables becoming intensely contested, countries seeking to meet their renewables targets are directing attention also towards tapping the potential in the urban environment through smaller-scale facilities. These entail other challenges, and countries are seeking ways to overcome them. The focus of this paper is on one, still evolving, type of renewable energy technology: small-scale wind turbines (SSWT). The paper presents a review of current but limited international academic knowledge on the land-regulation aspects of siting SSWT in countries that already have experience with such installations, including the USA, UK and New Zealand. The paper also reports on a comparative analysis of the land-related regulations and practices in two selected Mediterranean jurisdictions-Spain (Catalonia) and Israel. The approach of this study is exploratory, relying on analysis of legal and policy documents complemented by field work through in-depth interviews with key-stakeholders in both jurisdictions. The overall aim of this study is to examine different approaches of planning systems to new technologies. The findings show that despite their shared objective factors, the two jurisdictions have adopted almost opposite approach to regulating SSWTs. The findings, therefore, suggest that the incorporation of an unknown technology within the city requires a change of mindset both among the officials and among the city residents. A more effective regulatory framework might therefore entails a combination of strategic thinking, an experimental approach and the capacity to learn from cross-national comparative experiences.
Energies
Even where physical conditions appear perfectly suited for wind power production, there is significant variation in the number of turbines installed. This pattern suggests that physical conditions are a pre-requisite for, but not a determinant of, that production. This study reports the results of an analysis of the county-level correlates of wind power installations in the north–south corridor of the central United States, which contains much of the country’s greatest land-based wind resources. This study focuses on the relative effects of social capital, global climate change concern, and local biodiversity, while controlling for other potential explanations that previous research has identified as leading to support for or to opposition to turbine installation. We find (1) that greater local biodiversity is associated with fewer turbine installations; (2) that the percent of the public who believe humans are causing climate change is not associated with the number of installed tu...