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Social aspects. Wind energy. Charlotte Huber. Nancy J. Guarderas H. Robert Pajdak. GROUP 3. Social aspects . Social and economical benefits Energy access and security Impacts on human activities and well-being Land and marine usage Property value impacts Cultural impacts
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Social aspects Wind energy • Charlotte Huber • Nancy J. Guarderas H. • RobertPajdak • GROUP 3
Social aspects • Social and economical benefits • Energy access and security • Impacts on human activities and well-being • Land and marine usage • Property value impacts • Cultural impacts • Electromagnetic inference (EMI) • Visual impacts • Health and safety • Noise • Shadow flicker / ice / broken blades • Minimizing social and environmental concerns
Social and economical benefits • The use of wind energy can provide social benefits to developing and developed countries • Iceland relies entirely on renewable energy sources for energy production, based entirely on hydro and geothermal power
Social and economical benefits • The main social advantage of using wind energy here is most likely the increased diversity of energy production and better energy security • Introducing a new energy option also supports smaller and more distributed energy sources for the country
Energy access and security • Energy use per capita is correlated to the development level of countries • For developing countries expanding access to energy is very important • In these areas, decentralized grids and small scale energy production installations, including windmills, are more competitive
Energy access and security • Access to energy is not a problem in Iceland • It can be expensive for remote farms to buy electricity and thus small windmills could be an interesting option for them
Impacts on human activities and well-being • Land and marine usage • Property value impacts • Cultural impacts • Electromagnetic inference (EMI) • Visual impacts • Health and safety • Minimizing social and environmental concerns
Land and marine usage • Wind energy installations require open spaces and access to windmills that are usually installed on grazing lands, agricultural, and coastal areas • The development of wind energy installation has generated conflicts in some locations in the world
Land and marine usage • Offshore wind farms can affect both fishing grounds and shipping routes • Can be avoided through a careful planning process • Finding space for wind farms either onshore and offshore that would affect human life probably will not be a problem in Iceland
Property value impacts • There is some concern that residential property values can be affected near wind power plants • Published research has not found strong evidence about it
Cultural impacts • Historic, sacred and archaeological sites must be considered sensitive sites for wind power installations • Indirect effects, for instance the visual impact of wind turbines near areas of high cultural value, have to be considered too • Insensitivity to the cultural value of locations where wind farms are constructed can contribute to conflicts
Electromagnetic inference (EMI) • Wind power plants can cause electromagnetic interference and affect signals, including television, radio, cellular phones and radar • Can be minimized by technical solutions and location planning
Visual impacts • Most discussed social impact, due to unnatural appearances in landscapes • Wind power plants have grown in size in recent years and also spread geographically, so impact is growing bigger
Visual impacts • To counteractions of visual pollution: • Turbines of similar size and shape • Light-coloured paints • Choosing a smaller number of larger turbines over a larger number of smaller ones • Burying connection cabling • Ensuring that blades rotate in the same direction
Health and safety Noise Shadow flicker / ice / broken blades
Noise Not enough scientific proof on noise induced health damage
Shadow flicker / ice / broken blades Seasonal problem, regulations in case of critical light conditions and safety measures during winter
Minimizing social and environmental concerns • Planning Phase is essential to success in public acceptance • Early involvement of local people -> transparency • Proper planning as precondition to minimize social and environmental impacts
Thank you! Questions?