Having a Wind Turbine in the Viewshed or Not: Cumulative Effects of Existing On-Land Wind Turbines

Abstract

Presently, on-land wind turbine densities are increasing in many countries and with an expected rise in local resistance. However, despite that the “crowding” of wind turbines in especially the urban fringe and in more densely populated rural areas, few studies have to date analysed the cumulative effects of wind turbines on the social acceptance of wind power. We shed light on this issue and find that the attitude towards increasing the on-land wind power capacity in Denmark is significantly influenced by the number of turbines people see on a daily basis. Most strikingly, we find that this effect is conditional on having a wind turbine in the viewshed from the permanent or summer residence. Accordingly, if people cannot see an on-land wind turbine from their permanent or summer residence we do not find significant evidence of cumulative effects on attitude.

Keywords: wind power, attitude, cumulative effects, viewshed effects