Carbon or cash: Evaluating the effectiveness of environmental and economic messages on attitudes about wind energy in the United States

Peterson, David A.; Carter, Kristyna C.; Wald, Dara M.; Gustafson, William I.; Hartz, Sidney; Donahue, Jacob; Eilers, Joe R.; Hamilton, Anne E.; Hutchings, Kyle; Macchiavelli, Federico E.; Mehner, Aaron J.; Cajigas, Zaira P. Pagan; Pfeiffer, Olivia; Middendorp, Aaron J. Van

doi:10.1016/j.erss.2019.01.007

Cited by 12 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…The share of liberals among early adopters of private solar panels was higher than the share of conservatives [12]. Liberal ideology and orientation to liberal parties was associated with elevated support for renewable energy projects and policies, as well as with stronger support for the Swiss Energy Act [3,13,14].…”

Section: The Impact Of Political Ideology On Judgments and Decisionsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Ideology as Filter: Motivated Information Processing and Decision-Making in the Energy Domain

et al. 2020

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The transition towards more renewable energy will substantially increase voters’ involvement in the political decision-making process in the energy domain. Decisions such as whether to approve or reject large-scale energy programs can be complex, especially when available information cues are numerous and conflicting. Here, we hypothesize that political ideology is a strong determinant in this process, serving as a filter that voters apply when evaluating the relevance of provided information cues. We tested this hypothesis in the context of the 2017 Public Vote on the Swiss Energy Act. A sample of n = 931 Swiss voters were presented with arguments in favor or against the Energy Act, which were framed in terms of values found to be relevant for liberal and conservative ideologies, respectively. Political ideology strongly determined individual attitudes and voting preferences. Political ideology moreover moderated the influence of information provision on decisions, in that arguments congruent with voters’ political ideology were more likely to be evaluated as personally relevant and integrated into their decisions. We discuss the implications of our findings for measures on how to address ideology-based decision-making in order to ensure a well-informed electorate.

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Section: The Impact Of Political Ideology On Judgments and Decisionsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Ideology as Filter: Motivated Information Processing and Decision-Making in the Energy Domain

et al. 2020

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“…Demographics may play an important role in local acceptance. One study that relied on a national survey found higher support for wind energy among males and White people; and lower support from those who identified as Republicans, were more conservative, or lived in the Northeast ( 19 ). Several other papers find a political divide, with greater opposition from conservatives ( 20 ) and greater support from liberals ( 21 ).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Wind projects’ location may also affect support, with some regions being more supportive or hostile to projects. Several studies have found that individuals living closer to wind energy facilities are less supportive of projects ( 5 , 19 , 27 ), suggesting wind projects in remote areas may receive higher support. Land use may also affect support.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence and predictors of wind energy opposition in North America

Stokes,

Franzblau,

Lovering

et al. 2023

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Addressing climate change requires societies to transition away from fossil fuels toward low-carbon energy, including renewables. Unfortunately, large wind projects have proven politically controversial, with groups opposing them across advanced economies. To date, there are few large-scale, systematic studies to identify the prevalence and predictors of opposition to wind energy projects. Here, we analyzed a dataset of wind energy projects across the United States and Canada between 2000 and 2016. We found that during this period, in the United States, 17% of wind projects faced significant opposition, and in Canada, 18% faced opposition, with rates in both countries growing over time. Opposition was concentrated regionally in the Northeastern United States and in Ontario, Canada. In both countries, larger projects with more turbines were more likely to be opposed. In the United States, opposition was more likely and more intense in areas with a higher proportion of White people, and a smaller proportion of Hispanic people. In Canada, opposition was more likely and more intense in wealthier communities. The most common tactics used to oppose wind energy were court cases, legislation, and physical protests. The number of people engaging in opposition to wind projects is likely small: Across articles that cited the number of individuals engaging in protests, the median number was 23 in the United States and 34 in Canada. When wealthier, Whiter communities oppose wind projects, this slows down the transition away from fossil fuel projects in poorer communities and communities of color, an environmental injustice we call “energy privilege.”

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“…Globally, governments support the development of wind power to mitigate the negative externalities of traditional fossil fuel electricity generation such as CO 2 emissions and greenhouse gasses [20]. Although wind energy has made great advances, coal is still the largest source of electricity in many industrialized countries [21,22]. Fossil fuel power plants are the primary source of greenhouse gases (GHG) in many countries [23].…”

Section: Development Motivationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Cost of Wind: Negative Economic Effects of Global Wind Energy Development

Dorrell

Lee

2020

Energies

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This paper provides a structured literature review of the negative economic effects associated with the development of wind energy and synthesized the evidence at an abstract level. We then developed an analytical framework to systematically review economic issues such as volatility, electricity price, housing values, and unemployment in relation to wind energy. Global wind energy development data from the time period from 2000 through 2019 were included for a more robust analysis. This period encompasses the vast majority of total global installed wind energy capacity. After amalgamating evidence from existing studies and data banks, we discuss the policy implications, suggest avenues for future research, and propose solutions to mitigate externalities. By understanding the negative economic impact created by the expansion of wind energy, we can better equip policy makers and developers to create more efficient and sustainable energy policy to benefit citizens and preserve the environment for generations to come.

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Carbon or cash: Evaluating the effectiveness of environmental and economic messages on attitudes about wind energy in the United States

Cited by 12 publications

References 23 publications

Ideology as Filter: Motivated Information Processing and Decision-Making in the Energy Domain

Ideology as Filter: Motivated Information Processing and Decision-Making in the Energy Domain

Prevalence and predictors of wind energy opposition in North America

The Cost of Wind: Negative Economic Effects of Global Wind Energy Development

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