Have Local Government and Public Expectations of Wind Energy Project Benefits Been Met? Implications for Repowering Schemes

0433781 - ÚGN 2015 RIV GB eng J - Journal Article
Frantál, Bohumil
Have Local Government and Public Expectations of Wind Energy Project Benefits Been Met? Implications for Repowering Schemes.
Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning. Roč. 16, č. 3 (2014). ISSN 1523-908X. E-ISSN 1522-7200
R&D Projects: GA MŠMT EE2.3.20.0025
Institutional support: RVO:68145535
Keywords : wind energy * local acceptance * repowering * outcome fairness
Subject RIV: DE - Earth Magnetism, Geodesy, Geography
Impact factor: 1.510, year: 2014
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1523908X.2014.936583#.VE421xZh4cs

Replacing existing wind turbines with new and higher capacity turbines (repowering) is to become a major challenge for planners within the next decade. While the benefits of repowering are evident, it cannot be assumed that the process will proceed automatically and without problems. The acceptance of future developments will be significantly affected by whether expectations of benefits from previous projects have been met, and whether perceived advantages of existing wind farms have outweighed their disadvantages. Therefore, it is important to explore how existing wind farms and their impacts on local development and well-being are assessed. This paper presents the results of a survey with local governments and inhabitants of municipalities in the Czech Republic where wind turbines have been implemented and are in operation. The findings prove that perceived positive effects dominate over negative impacts and that a majority of local authorities and inhabitants are willing to support further development in their backyards. A disruption to local landscape was detected as the main factor behind opposition.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0237943