Geothermal technology in Australia: Investigating social acceptance

Dowd, Anne-Maree; Boughen, Naomi; Ashworth, Peta; Carr-Cornish, Simone

doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2011.07.029

Cited by 86 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…The findings from this research appear consistent with previous studies about societal acceptance and awareness of geothermal energy technology in Australia [10,14]. This study, specifically found that at the start, prior to additional information, participants were either unsure of the technology or agreed with the technology.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…The questionnaire results showed that after the provision of information, participants in the "Disagree", "Unsure" and "Agree" groups significantly differed in response to the statement 'that risks are unknown', confirming Slovic's [27] work on the implications of risk uncertainty for emerging technology. The risks participants focused on were consistent with the information presented, however, they were also consistent with the risks previously identified by Dowd et al [14] and Reith et al [13] and included seismicity, water usage and pollution. Similar to previous research of the acceptance of carbon capture and storage, benefits identified by participants were mainly global in nature such as geothermal being a low emission energy technology [29,31].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

“…Previous research into public perceptions of geothermal energy in Australia has shown similar results, as concerns about geothermal energy technology are mostly local: water usage and seismic activity instigated by geothermal drilling [14]. Whereas benefits of geothermal energy technology commonly identified by the community, such as low emission energy have an effect at a larger scale, either nationally or globally.…”

Section: Perceived Benefits and Risks Of The Technologysupporting

confidence: 60%

“…Also emerging from CSIRO's research program were responses collected from workshops with members of the public in Australian capital cities during 2008 to 2009 [14]. Again, participants rated themselves as having low levels of knowledge of geothermal energy technology.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Differences in Public Perceptions of Geothermal Energy Technology in Australia

Carr-Cornish

Romanach

2014

Energies

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Abstract:In Australia, geothermal energy technology is still considered an emerging technology for energy generation. Like other emerging energy technologies, how the public perceive the technology and under what conditions they are likely to accept or oppose the technology, remains relatively unknown. In response, this exploratory research utilised online focus groups to identify: (1) the extent of agreement with geothermal technology before and after information, including media reports focusing on a range of the technology's attributes; and (2) how the characteristics of individuals with different levels of agreement vary. After information, within the sample of 101 participants, fewer reported being unsure, the minority disagreed and the majority agreed. Overall, the preference was for projects to be located away from communities. Participants that disagreed or were unsure, were more likely to report lower subjective knowledge of the technology, lower perceived benefits and higher risks, and were less likely to believe people in their community would have the opportunity to participate in consultation. These characteristics suggest there are advances to be made by analyzing what contributes to different levels of acceptance. The findings also suggest that the location of projects will be an important consideration and that the conditions of acceptance are likely to vary amongst community members.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

Section: Perceived Benefits and Risks Of The Technologysupporting

confidence: 60%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Differences in Public Perceptions of Geothermal Energy Technology in Australia

Carr-Cornish

Romanach

2014

Energies

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“…These authors emphasise that fact-based information provision is an essential ingredient, but not of sole importance, for successful communication. Communication with stakeholders is important when establishing renewable energy sources, such as wind farms (Wolsink 2007) and geothermal projects (Dowd et al 2011), as well as carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects (Hübner et al 2013). A large number of publications already address public perceptions and the issue of acceptance in relation to the geological storage of CO 2 .…”

Section: Communication and Communicatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fact-based communication: the Shale Gas Information Platform SHIP

2013

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In response to an increasingly expressed need for factual information, a science-based information web portal, the Shale Gas Information Platform SHIP, was developed. At the core of the project is the shale gas expert network. It's an international and interdisciplinary group composed of mainly scientists that share their specific knowledge with the public. With a strong focus on factual information, this initiative also strives to serve the scientific community as a publication and knowledge exchange platform. SHIP relies upon the basic principles of being science-based, transparent and balanced. The GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences coordinates this initiative.All rational decision-making requires that views are formed based on facts. This is true of the often complex decisions politicians must make; such as decisions on how to move forward towards a sustainable future energy supply. By sustainability, we are referring to economically, ecologically and socially acceptable elements, all of which are crucial components. Individual energy resources have to be evaluated for their advantages and disadvantages in all of the fields relevant to sustainability, and they have to be placed into the larger context of a future energy mix. Shale gas provides a relatively new challenge in this respect, since the technologies needed to produce it economically have only been developed and applied during the last two decades (Montgomery and Smith 2010). Large-scale production only began in the mid-1990s in the U.S., where it completely changed the national energy landscape and influenced gas markets worldwide (Stevens 2012). Large-scale production today is still limited to just the U.S. and Canada, but many nations worldwide are either deliberating about the opportunities and risks, or are about to start exploration activities. Among European governments, different opinions on the development of shale gas prevail. The French government has a clear stance on shale gas, recently banning shale gas exploration (EurActive 2012). On the other hand, Poland and Ukraine are moving forward apace, and testing their shale gas potential. Others, like Germany or the Netherlands, are hesitant about pursuing exploration activities and are still in the process of making decisions. Also E.U. bodies are thinking very carefully about how to develop a unified position on shale gas (Shepherd 2012).Fact-based information about shale gas, especially regarding the potential environmental risks related to its production, was lacking until recently, and this deficiency is one reason behind the often subjective debate. Until recently information was only provided by the media, often with shocking headlines, on the websites of opponents to shale, and on industry websites. These information sources are often biased in the way they present information to the general public, serving their own vested interests. Reports in the media correctly draw attention to environmental concerns; however some of the headlines have grossly exaggerated the fa...

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Shaping information and knowledge on climate change technologies: A cross‐country qualitative analysis of carbon capture and storage results on Google search

Rowland,

López‐Asensio,

Bagci

et al. 2023

Asso for Info Science & Tech

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Commercial search engines play a central role in shaping, defining, and promoting the information people have access to in contemporary societies. This is particularly true when it comes to emergent technologies, for which there is often limited available information in legacy media and other sources, thus having a strong bearing on public perceptions. In this article, we focus on how the Google search engine promotes information on carbon capture and storage (CCS). We explore how Google's ranking parameters and interface shape the information people access when searching for CCS through a qualitative analysis comparing the results in three countries (France, Spain, and Portugal). We focus on the content of the first search engine result pages (SERP) and consider both Google's ranking criteria and the content and format of promoted sources. The study reveals Google's influence in highlighting Wikipedia pages, Q&A‐formatted sources, and prioritizing online specialized media and private corporations. Additionally, we observe country‐specific variations in terms of actors and types of content, reflecting the level of interest and investment in the topic at the national level. These findings underscore the significant role of search engine mediations in shaping public perceptions and knowledge about emergent climate change technologies.

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Geothermal technology in Australia: Investigating social acceptance

Cited by 86 publications

References 10 publications

Differences in Public Perceptions of Geothermal Energy Technology in Australia

Differences in Public Perceptions of Geothermal Energy Technology in Australia

Fact-based communication: the Shale Gas Information Platform SHIP

Shaping information and knowledge on climate change technologies: A cross‐country qualitative analysis of carbon capture and storage results on Google search

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