Social Acceptance Of Wind Energy Research Articles

Acceptance of offshore wind farm in Southwest Sardinia in Italy. Do regional energy policies matter?

PurposeThe social acceptance of wind energy is increasingly conditioning the Italian Government and regions to authorize the construction of these plants. The proposal of offshore wind farm in the south-west of Sardinia has raised many perplexities both from the marine environmental point of view and from concern about increasing the electricity production in a region that already exports electricity to the peninsula. The purpose of this study is to evaluate what are the factors that most affect the coastal residents’ acceptability of an offshore wind farm.Design/methodology/approachThe data is based on a Sardinia-wide in-person survey with about 512 participants in the period between May and June 2023. Respondents were selected randomly from five different locations in Carloforte region. Multiple regression analysis investigates the factors that influenced acceptability to construction and development of offshore wind power plant. Four independent variables were selected in the regression models such as (i) interest towards wind energy, (ii) attitude towards renewable energy production, (iii) perceived regional energy policy and (iv) attitude towards offshore wind farm. The dependent variables are the rates of coastal local residents’ acceptance of offshore wind farm for respondents in five coastal towns.FindingsFishermen and summer tourism operators’ respondents expressed significant reluctance to accept the new project because they perceive a strong risk of environmental impact on both tuna fishing and marine recreational activities in the vicinity. The distance between the turbines at sea and local residents along the coast and surrounding small islands does not have an influence to accept wind energy. The energy policy of the Region of Sardinia, which is perceived by respondents as an expansive energy policy in the production of electricity that exceeds their needs, not being accompanied by a scenario of reducing that from fossil fuels, is the variable that led about 70% of respondents to express a negative opinion towards this project.Research limitations/implicationsA potential problem associated with the survey is that local response produced sample selection bias. The proportion of respondents with secondary education and no school certificate is quite high. It is possible that respondents who provided valid questionnaires were more low-educated and therefore, the sample may be biased towards lower-educated people. While this does not invalidate the results of this study, it is important to note that the sample was on average less educated than the overall population in Italy. In addition, people with lower incomes were more likely to complete the questionnaires; the results are more representative of a portion of the population with incomes below the national average.Practical implicationsResults showed how coastal communities are in favour of wind energy within their island, but not within a marine protected area that is considered unique for its beauty and marine ecosystem. Wind energy developers should, before submitting a proposal for an offshore wind farm project, consider among other things the long approval time and understand the activities carried out by local communities and their attachment to those places. Politicians and developers should develop a coherent energy transition policy based on a long-term vision of zero emissions, because according to the findings of this study, it was the regional energy policy that is the most controversial reason for residents to reject the project.Originality/valueThe contribution of this study is to fill a part of the research gap linking to ongoing energy transitions. In particular, this study analysed for the first time in Italy the acceptability level of an offshore renewable energy project considering the environmental implications and risks in the fragile marine ecosystem of Carloforte waters. This study also made it possible to analyse the impact of the regional energy policy on the acceptability of residents towards the development of offshore wind farms, which is scarcely discussed in the literature.

Broadening the social acceptance of wind energy – An Integrated Acceptance Model

To foster the green energy transition, local acceptance of wind energy is highly relevant. Since simple solutions like setback distances do not reflect the issue complexity, we incorporated acceptance factors from social science and interdisciplinary research in an Integrated Acceptance Model (IAM). To capture impact differences of the acceptance factors, in Study 1, residents of three operating wind farms in Germany (N = 158) were surveyed. Five most relevant acceptance factors were derived by a regression analysis: economic effects, impacts on residents and nature, attitudes towards the energy transition, trust in local actors and the planning process as well as social norms substantially explained local acceptance (R2 = 0.76). Next, in Study 2 the IAM was validated in an early stage, informal planning process in a Bavarian region (N = 92). In accord with Study 1, the IAM explained the variance in local acceptance comprehensively (R2 = 0.78). Moreover, a consistent impact of economic effects, attitudes towards the energy transition, expected effects on residents and nature as well as social norms was observed. While social norms played a pronounced role in Study 2, trust only related to the acceptance in Study 1. The IAM seems to capture the overall relevant acceptance categories, which can be used as guidance to create a sustainable green energy transition.

All's fair in love and WAR: The conduct of wind acceptance research (WAR) in the United States and Canada

The number of studies examining social acceptance of wind energy in the United States and Canada has increased considerably since the 1980s. Here we conduct a methodological review of wind acceptance research (WAR) literature in response to four articles published in this journal. These include a recent synthesis of WAR by Rand and Hoen in 2017 recommending better incorporation of results into development practices and comparability of case studies; a 2020 investigation by Walsh and colleagues into potential research fatigue in unconventional oil and gas development research, and finally calls by Sovacool and others in 2014 and 2018 to increase the theoretical depth and reflection in energy social science. Using a systematic review of 114 WAR articles and an online survey of 41 corresponding authors, we investigate the location of WAR study sites, the success of different WAR designs and incentives, the disciplines and theories dominating WAR, and finally dissemination practices. Our results show that, outside national surveys, WAR is geographically concentrated in regions distant from the highest installed capacity and focus on projects that are novel, controversial, or unique to a specific region. We find little support for research fatigue. Additionally, most WAR lacks an underlying theory. We conclude by recommending greater qualitative analysis of study site selection criteria and greater integration of existing WAR theories and WAR with solar acceptance research. Finally, we urge scholars to ensure and communicate a clear purpose, value and financial benefit to WAR participants and meaningfully consider the broader community contexts examined.

Keep it local and bird-friendly: Exploring the social acceptance of wind energy in Switzerland, Estonia, and Ukraine

The literature on social acceptance of wind energy has identified several important characteristics shaping the social acceptance of a planned project. These include distributional and procedural justice, as well as other project-related factors. Project characteristics do not exist in isolation and influence one another. Furthermore, social acceptance of wind energy is likely to vary geographically, due to cross-country differences. As a result, the need for more consistent cross-country comparisons has been highlighted in the literature as an important research gap. The current paper addresses this gap with the help of a large-scale cross-country analysis (N = 2003) that examines the social acceptance of wind energy projects in Switzerland, Estonia, and Ukraine through choice experiments. Our analysis shows some exploratory evidence for country-specific differences: A tradition of direct democratic decision-making might lead to placing more emphasis on procedural justice, and we also identify some early evidence for differences between individualist and collectivist countries in terms of preferences for distributional justice. However, we also find that ecological impact was the most important attribute in all three countries, and respondents tend to appreciate local ownership. We conclude that projects should be developed by local actors and remain friendly to wildlife – keeping them local and bird-friendly.

Social Acceptance of Wind Energy in Urban Landscapes

Although wind energy has high potential as a sustainable energy source to fight climate change, and the post COVID-19 world may require accelerated transition to renewable energy systems, many wind energy projects nevertheless face community resistance Research on social acceptance of wind energy has increased rapidly, but understanding still lacks regarding the different types of acceptance, whether or not the acceptance correlates with demographics, and what drives acceptance of wind farms in the urban landscape Our analysis of 2,376 residents in Helsinki, the capital of Finland, focused on the gaps in understanding and identified three groups of people: Protagonists, Centrists, and Antagonists While Protagonists are highly positive about wind energy projects in the city, Antagonists oppose them, and Centrists adopt a middle-of-the-road approach Further, three factors matter for social acceptance in urban landscapes: 1) distance, as residents prefer offshore wind farms to be farther away from the city's inhabitants, 2) gender, as women are more accepting of wind energy compared with men, and outright opponents of wind energy are more likely men, and 3) participation, as residents wish to participate in decision-making processes regarding wind farms, but lack interest in having ownership of and responsibility for wind energy projects The study discusses the implications of these findings for developers and policymakers of wind energy projects in the urban context © 2020 SciPost Physics All rights reserved

Explaining Factors Leading to Community Acceptance of Wind Energy. Results of an Expert Assessment

The present article deals with two key drivers of social acceptance of wind energy: procedural justice and distributional justice. It is based on a comparative expert assessment carried out in the frame of the Horizon 2020 project WinWind covering six European countries. The focus of the paper is on procedural and financial participation of citizens and local stakeholders in wind energy projects. The first part covers institutional arrangements for public engagement in two areas of the decision-making process—wind turbine zoning/siting in spatial plans and authorization procedures. Here, three levels of public involvement—information, consultation and participation—were analyzed. The second part examines active and financial participation of citizens and local stakeholders. Here, we distinguish between two different modes of governance: institutionalized forms of public governance and voluntary forms of corporate governance. The outcomes suggest that concrete paths to the social acceptance of wind energy are fostered via appropriate institutional spaces for public engagement. Furthermore, missing opportunities for active and passive financial participation can have strong negative consequences for community acceptance

Multi-criteria and focus group analysis for social acceptance of wind energy

In the last decades, the debate on renewable energy has received international attention. In the European countries, several wind energy projects encounter objections and protests from the neighbouring population of wind farm sites. This study aims to understand the drivers of this obstructive behaviour suggesting the main issues to discuss for adequate regulatory strategies to promote at community level. The novelty of this study is that for the first time, qualitative – Focus Group – and quantitative – Optimized-Analytic Hierarchy Process and Monte Carlo simulation – approaches, are used synergistically to support the view of a social acceptance to wind energy. In particular, the analysis focuses on: i) People’s perception of wind energy in a context of public engagement; ii) Assessment of the factors affecting a wind farm; iii) Differences occurring in people’s perception living nearby or far from wind farms. Main results suggest a general critical attitude due to misinformation and lack of transparency of governmental institutions. Moreover, the density of turbines, dismantling process and impacts on landscape and ecosystems need particular attention. Finally, our results show that the distance to wind farms would not sensibly affect the social acceptance across groups of stakeholders.

Individual or collective? Community investment, local taxes, and the social acceptance of wind energy in Switzerland

This research paper describes the effect of different financial participation models for wind energy projects on the social acceptance of a hypothetical project. Based on the configuration of three different financial participation models tested in a pre-study with several industry experts, we conducted an experimental survey with a representative sample of Swiss electricity customers (n = 1202). Our results indicate that a local resource tax that benefits the entire community is favored over individual financial participation models (namely, the opportunity for local citizens to participate through shares or bonds). For key stakeholders such as community attached people or those with a politically centrist, progressive mindset, the local resource tax leads to a significant increase in acceptance. As findings about specific financial participation models for wind energy projects are rare, our research creates a foundation on which social acceptance of wind energy projects at the local community level can be fostered.

Method Sequence and Dominance in Mixed Methods Research: A Case Study of the Social Acceptance of Wind Energy Literature

As more researchers have considered the use of mixed methods, writings have moved away from debates about epistemological incompatibilities and now focus on the (potential) value of increased understanding that comes from combining qualitative and quantitative approaches. Yet, as the level of integration can vary substantially, some designs are said to allow one method or the other to dominate. Although there may be sound reasoning for intentionally allowing one method to dominate, here we investigate one literature as a moment to reflect why, and on the degree to which mixed methods sequence is so bound up with methodological dominance, that calling such studies “mixed” may seem misleading. Like the history of social science more generally, it is quantitative research that is typically given more weight in these studies and academics have noted a few reasons why this may be the case. Few have investigated how research design—and more specifically method sequence—may impact method dominance. Using an emerging mixed methods literature surrounding the social acceptance of wind energy ( N = 34), we study the relationship between the timing of each method (i.e., sequence) and method dominance to see whether qualitative methods in particular are marginalized. Through our Dominance in Mixed Methods Assessment model, we provide evidence that indeed qualitative methods are marginalized and this may be associated with method sequence and other design elements. Moreover, some authors focus solely on one method, giving pause to caution both writers and readers about the use of the term “mixed methods.” The analytical approach is detailed enough to be replicated and detect whether these patterns are repeated in other research domains.

A participatory integrated assessment of the social acceptance of wind energy

This research paper deals with problems of operationalisation or how to conduct research in the field of energy and climate change from a methodological point of view. Guided by a participatory integrated assessment the research project TransWind identified key issues relevant to the social acceptance of wind energy development in Austria. Based on a mixed-method design including modelling and visualisation efforts, workshops, interviews, focus groups and questionnaires researchers and stakeholders expressed their ideas and perceptions with regard to the three dimensions of social acceptance: community, market, and socio-political acceptance. The paper focuses on two main challenges in the assessment: i) the integration of various relevant stakeholders into the research process, ii) the integration of different research methods into one conceptional and methodological reliable assessment investigating the social acceptance of wind energy. The results highlight that there is a strong need for integrating in a systematic way the analytical perspectives of scientists and their approaches with preferences and perceptions of the persons concerned about the issue.

Lessons learned from Ontario wind energy disputes

Issues concerning the social acceptance of wind energy are major challenges for policy-makers, communities and wind developers. They also impact the legitimacy of societal decisions to pursue wind energy. Here we set out to identify and assess the factors that lead to wind energy disputes in Ontario, Canada, a region of the world that has experienced a rapid increase in the development of wind energy. Based on our expertise as a group comprising social scientists, a community representative and a wind industry advocate engaged in the Ontario wind energy situation, we explore and suggest recommendations based on four key factors: socially mediated health concerns, the distribution of financial benefits, lack of meaningful engagement and failure to treat landscape concerns seriously. Ontario's recent change from a feed-in-tariff-based renewable electricity procurement process to a competitive bid process, albeit with more attention to community engagement, will only partially address these concerns. Ontario, Canada, has seen a number of policy measures introduced since 2009 to increase wind energy production. This Perspective explores the impacts and implications of those policies on wind energy disputes in terms of health, financial benefit, community engagement and the landscape.

Wind energy in the city: An interurban comparison of social acceptance of wind energy projects

A transition towards low-carbon energy sources, such as wind, requires higher levels of public interaction; as such, the ultimate contribution of wind energy relies as much on technological advancements and policies as on societal sentiments. This study evaluates the influence of region, community involvement, and several IEA-recommended practices on social acceptance of wind energy projects among residents (n=350) surveyed from cities in four OECD and three non-OECD countries. The results indicate interurban variations among the generally high levels of acceptance reported, especially among residents of cities in developing countries with lower domestic CO2 emissions. The level of community involvement in a hypothetical wind energy project had a positive effect on acceptance, and respondents from cities in countries with the highest installed wind capacity reported the greatest sensitivity towards involvement. Moreover, the results revealed that although the IEA-recommended practices collectively predicted acceptance across all cities, fair distribution of earnings and costs was the only significant individual predictor. These economic considerations, combined with increased community involvement, appear to be paramount to facilitating future development of wind energy. Through its broad geographical coverage, this research provides valuable groundwork for future cross-cultural studies on social acceptance of wind energy.

Large‐scale wind deployment, social acceptance

AbstractThe public is typically in agreement with the renewable energy targets established in many national states and generally supports the idea of increased reliance on wind energy. Nevertheless, many specific wind power projects face significant local opposition. A key question for the wind energy sector is, therefore, how to better engage local people to foster support for specific projects. IEA Wind Task 28 on Social Acceptance of Wind Energy Projects aims to facilitate wind energy development by reviewing current practices, emerging ideas, and exchanging successful practices among the participating countries. It also aims to disseminate the insights of leading research to a nontechnical audience, including project developers, local planning officials, and the general public. The interdisciplinary approach adopted by Task 28 enables an in‐depth understanding of the nature of opposition to wind projects and a critical assessment of emerging strategies for social acceptance. Task 28 has analyzed a range of key issues related to social acceptance of wind energy, including the impacts on landscapes and ecosystems, on standard of living and well‐being, the implementation of energy policy and spatial planning, the distribution of costs and benefits, and procedural justice. It is clear that although wind energy has many benefits; however, specific projects do impact local communities. As such the concerns of the affected people have to be taken seriously. Moreover, as opposition is rarely without foundation, it is in the interests of developers and advocates to engage local people and to improve projects for the benefit of all.This article is categorized under: Wind Power > Economics and Policy

Social Acceptance of Wind Energy

Social Acceptance of Wind Energy

Policy Networks of Wind Energy: The Story of the First Commercial Wind Farm in Spain

This paper concerns the pioneering commercial wind farms in Tarifa, in the context of the Spanish wind energy. Teething problems and mistakes at Tarifa help understand critical success factors for sustainable development of the wind industry and to form policies accordingly. In Tarifa, there have been fewer local benefits than might have been possible and this has resulted in social dissatisfaction. Yet social acceptance of wind energy is crucial, due to the local opinion and environmental impact. The study shows that profitability is not the only measure of success in the wind industry. Legal and administrative procedures concerning the environmental performance of wind energy have grown from non-existence to dominance, and the industry is now subject to greater environmental monitoring than other far, usually more harmful, forms of power generation. Willingness to promote wind energy as a real alternative to conventional energy sources is essential in order to combat climate change and other environmental hazards.