Höfer, Antonia (2023) Reducing Wind Turbine-Induced Bird Mortality: the Black Blade - on Values, Perceived Consequences, and Public Acceptance of Wind Parks. Master thesis, Psychology.
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Abstract
Research has identified various factors that could inhibit people from being acceptive of wind energy, the biggest of which seems to be visual pollution. Another related factor, that of wind turbine-induced bird mortality, and its influence on acceptability is still unclear. In order to counter bird fatalities, researchers have come up with an intervention to decrease fatalities by painting one of the wind turbine’s blades black and thereby reducing motion smear. The present study investigated how perceptions of bird mortality and visual aesthetics may change between conventional wind parks and wind parks with black blades, how these changes may be related to the values people hold, and how that may in turn influence acceptability of wind parks. We further investigated whether the provision of information on the black blade’s benefit would result in different perceptions and acceptability compared to when not providing that information. Our results suggest that, when provided with information on the environmental benefit, participants perceived wind parks with black blades to have more positive consequences for bird welfare and visual aesthetics, as well as a higher acceptability, compared to conventional wind parks. Even without knowing their benefits, wind parks with black blades were not perceived as more harmful or less visually pleasing than conventional wind parks, and participants showed no differences in acceptability. In line with previous literature there was a general relation between biospheric values and the dependent variables, however, all but one change in perceptions and acceptability were irrespective of which values people held.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Master) |
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| Supervisor name: | Perlaviciute, G. |
| Degree programme: | Psychology |
| Differentiation route: | Environmental Psychology (EP) [Master Psychology] |
| Date Deposited: | 01 Sep 2023 09:00 |
| Last Modified: | 01 Sep 2023 09:00 |
| URI: | http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/2841 |
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