1. IEA Task 28: Social Acceptance United States Update
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Author(s) name(s) and affiliation(s) (Arial 45pt.)
Suzanne Tegen, NREL; Ben Hoen and Joe Rand, LBNL
IEA Task 28 Meeting
26 March, 2018

2. Wind Energy Update: United States Market
2017
U.S. wind power is adding capacity and is not showing signs of stopping.
Projections show that with the Production Tax Credit ramp down (started at 2.4c/kWh in 2017). We expect market growth to slow.
Investment Tax Credit for distributed wind ramping down from 30 to 12% by 2019

3. Social Acceptance: Ongoing Work
NREL: Rush Creek Wind Farm in rural Colorado
600 MW, 300 Vestas turbines
Economic development impacts, landowner payments, indirect economic impacts to businesses and host communities
Interviews with local officials, business owners
To be published in 2018.

4. Social Acceptance Ongoing Work: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
Atlantic Fishing Industry
BOEM has created a place for commercial fishers to view opportunities for participating in their rule making process, or to just voice opinions. Atlantic Fishing Industry Communication and Engagement
Analysis of the Effects of the Block Island Wind Farm on Rhode Island Recreation and Tourism Activities
Determine indicators for evaluating impacts from wind facilities on recreation and tourism.
University of Rhode Island will publish a BOEM report at the end of 2018.
Quantitative Assessment of Spatially-Explicit Social Values off of the Atlantic coast
Collection of spatially-explicit, value orientation data that is relevant to areas planned for renewable energy development.
Includes place-based attachments and likelihood of local engagement (supporting or opposing).
The report is expected in 2019.
Scenarios for Offshore Renewable Energy along the Central California Coast
Creating feasibility scenarios for future offshore projects.

5. The Cumulative Number of Homes Near Turbines Is Increasing, While the Distance to the Nearest Homes Is Decreasing

6. Summary Of Results: 5 Projects
National Survey of Attitudes of U.S. Wind Power Project Neighbors
Summary Of Results: 5 Projects
Ben Hoen, Joe Rand & Ryan Wiser Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Jeremy Firestone University of Delaware
Ryan Haac, Ken Kaliski & Matt Landis Resource Systems Group
Gundula Hübner & Johannes Pohl Halle-Wittenberg and Medical School of Hamburg
Debi Elliott Portland State University
Eric Lantz National Renewable Energy Laboratory
This analysis was funded by the Wind Energy Technologies Office of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC02-05CH11231.

7. Project 1: Literature Review
Purpose:
summarize North American wind energy acceptance literature
focus on key correlates; and
to identify research gaps
Reviewed 130 documents (mostly North American)
Published in Energy Research and Social Science, July, 2017

8. Survey (Projects 2-5): Data Collection
- Phone, Mail & Internet Survey
1,705 Responses Collected
Near 250 Wind Projects In 24 States
- Respondents are all within 5 miles (8 km) of a modern wind turbine
>= 364 feet tall & >= 1.5 MW
- Oversampled
close to (<1 mile/1.6 km) turbines
large projects (>10 turbines)
where sound was modeled
- Weighting
To adjust for oversampling and sample/population differences

9. Project 2: Overall Analysis of Attitudes
Key Findings
Majority Of Respondents Have Positive Attitudes
Evidence of self-selection into communities over time
Distance is not correlated
Compensation is not a panacea
Attitude Correlates:
planning process fairness,
perceived aesthetics / sound annoyances,
perceived property value impacts, and
wind’s effectiveness in combating climate change

10. Project 3: Planning Process Fairness
Do you believe the planning process was fair? (n = 915)
Key Findings
A small majority felt the process was fair
Developer openness and influencing outcome key driver in “fairness”
One in five took action during process
Action takers: 6 supporters for every one opponent
Spoke at meeting: 1 supporter for every one opponent
53%
Perception of Process Fairness is a key component in attitude formation
Developer transparency and openness is particularly important; It is more important than the extent of the participation provided
States and communities should consider
Developing procedures that ensure citizens are consulted and heard
Establishing benchmarks or best practices for developer interaction with communities and citizens
What factors were present in the planning process?
12%
34%
48%
24%

11. Project 4: Predicting Audibility and Annoyance Using Modeled Sound Results
Key Findings
Within ½ mile
50% can hear turbines from home
12% were very annoyed by those sounds
Modeled and background sound explain audibility but not annoyance
Annoyance Predictors
Attitude prior to construction
Compensation
Stated noise sensitivity
Perception of Process Fairness is a key component in attitude formation
Developer transparency and openness is particularly important; It is more important than the extent of the participation provided
States and communities should consider
Developing procedures that ensure citizens are consulted and heard
Establishing benchmarks or best practices for developer interaction with communities and citizens
Key Predictors
Modeled Sound
Background Sound
Key Predictors
Turbines in View
Moved in Prior to Construction
Compensation
Key Predictors
Attitude Prior to Construction
Stated Noise Sensitivity + +

12. Project 5: Strongly Annoyed Individuals with Symptoms
Definition Of Annoyance Stress Scale A Combination Of Annoyance Level And Symptom Frequency
Key Findings
2% or less are “strongly” annoyed within 3 miles
Similar result patterns between US, Swiss and German surveys
Turbine sound and shadow annoyance similar to traffic sound annoyance
Sound Annoyance Stress Scale Correlates
Perceived planning process fairness
Stated planning process annoyance
Attitudes toward the local project
Distance, number of turbines visible and demographic variables NOT found to be correlated
Perception of Process Fairness is a key component in attitude formation
Developer transparency and openness is particularly important; It is more important than the extent of the participation provided
States and communities should consider
Developing procedures that ensure citizens are consulted and heard
Establishing benchmarks or best practices for developer interaction with communities and citizens

13. Thank you
U.S. Participants in IEA Task 28 Ben Hoen, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Joe Rand, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Suzanne Tegen, National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Eric Lantz, National Renewable Energy Laboratory.