Wind Energy in the Eyes of the Public

Kristiana Sigmon Engl 313 Magazine article Wind Energy in the Eyes of the Public Renewable wind energy has been discussed amongst the scientific community since the 80s, but what about the public community? The hard reality is that today’s culture isn’t involved in the discussion unless they are directly affected by the issue. How do we get the public in the discussion and concerned about the future of wind energy? I decided to ask a few people from the science community about the research involved between public opinion and wind power energy.

As I sat down with researchers, Holly Klick and Eric Smith, I wondered to myself how this interview was going to go. Would I be able to understand all of the statistics they were likely to discuss? Are my questions going to be substantial? Also, what was the big fuss about wind energy production?

“Americans regularly read news stories about wind power,” Klick began, “Yet because largescale wind power is relatively new, we do not know how much Americans understand about it or what they think about it.”

Klick and Smith are both in the Department of Political Science at the University of California where they study the social opinions and acceptability of wind energy.

“Wind power is generally recognized … studies predict that it can provide at least 20 percent of U.S. electricity needs within the next 10 to 15 years,” Smith urged. “Despite the general public support … proposals for specific wind farms are often opposed by people living near the site of the proposed developments.”

If wind power was already recognized as being a better alternative for energy resources, why was there aversion? Did the public really know about the issue or were they being misinformed; my questions led me to dive further into the interview and into some research of my own.

There are two main aspects of wind power that the public are concerned about: financial investments and visual impact. Unless investment comes solely from the government the public is not so worried about how much wind power farms would cost them. However, government dependency for financial stability of the farms cannot and will not last long; wind farm engineers need private investors to make the projects truly last. Private investors will also guarantee that the farms will be for home use rather than business use only.

What happens once there are private investors though? Wind farms cannot just pop up out of nowhere; there are legal constraints, as well as space and neighbor constraints, that the wind engineers and investors will have to face. Most public opinion focus on the visual impact the

wind turbines will have on the landscape. Most home buyers purchase their homes because of the location, and with giant wind turbines blocking the visual beauty of the landscape around the home, buyers become turned off about buying the property.

“Wind farm opponents argue that wind turbines cause too much noise, decrease property values, harm birds and other wildlife, and spoil the scenery,” Smith stated. “[And] public support for wind energy is critical for the growth of the wind industry.”

In order to counteract this opposition to wind turbines, wind engineers and operators have sought to change the wind turbines operations. For example, the Cadiz wind farms in Spain began with mortality rates increasing for griffon vultures and other wildlife in the sky, but once Marc Bechard and his colleagues of the Department of Ethology and Biodiversity Conservation in Spain changed the design for operation of the wind turbines mortality rates decreased.

“Mortality of griffon vultures can be decreases by one half with only 0.07 percent reduction in energy production,” Bechard shared.

The only issue that still causes concern is the aesthetic value of a property with wind turbines nearby and researchers are still working on this aspect. Engineers and operators focus more on the height and stability of the wind farms because the wind turbines have to be places in locations where they can reach the air that is in a constant stream. After realizing public concern for property value researchers will hopefully focus on placing the farms far enough away from local neighborhoods and housing developments.

“To examine public opinion … we used data from an internet survey of the American public,” Klick and Smith both explained. “610 Americans [were surveyed through the] internet. Despite the fact that our sample is only roughly representative, we believe that it provides a good basis for describing public opinion toward wind power.”

Throughout the interview, Klick and Smith continued to explain what their survey found and how their research could, hopefully, further wind power production as well as increase public support. “[Our] results suggest a public that is fairly well informed,” Smith began. “Our respondents know that wind turbines emit less pollution than fossil fuel power plants.”

“Yet only 18 percent realize that electricity generated from the wind is currently more expensive than power generated from coal-fired power plants,” Klick interjected, “[and] increasing knowledge about this aspect of wind power may reduce its popularity.”

“Our interpretation … is that people gave quick … responses to the initial wind power question, but they gave more thoughtful responses to the later question because it …bring up positive and negative characteristics of wind power,” Smith finished.

Through their research of public opinion concerning wind power, both Klick and Smith will be able to take their findings and advance the research and production of wind power farms. By understanding the opposition people had, wind power engineers and investors will be able to create more farms in the United Sates once the issues and concerns are corrected. One day, the whole country could be run through the use of clean, natural energy at a cheaper price than current fossil fuel energies.

Works Cited Berchard, Mar J. & Ferrer, Miguel & Lucas, Manuela de & Munoz, Anotonio R., (2012). Griffon vulture moratlity at wind farms in southern Spain: Distribution of fatalities and active mitigation measures. Biological Conservation, 147, 184-189. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2011.12.029 Klick, H. & Smith, E. R.A.N., (2010). Public understanding of and support for wind power in the United States. Renewable Energy, 35, 1585-1591. doi: 10.1016/j.renene.2009.11.028