IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 50
the united Nations-led regulatory framework for environmental projects established by the aarhus convention
emphasizes that citizens have a right to be informed about
and comment on environmental decisions and that their comments will be taken into account in decision making. Public
engagement and support are crucial for realizing sustainable
energy projects that are necessary steps toward the Paris
agreement's goal of keeping the increase in global average
temperature to well below 2 oc and aim to limit the increase
to 1.5 oc. reducing air pollution, enhancing public health,
and conserving water and food are also central motivations
for a cleaner energy system. energy projects will not be viable unless people adopt and adequately use the related infrastructure and technology, change their behavior to adjust to
the (renewable) energy supply, reduce overall energy demand,
and accept policies surrounding a sustainable energy transition. yet many proposed sustainable energy projects are met
with fierce public opposition, especially from communities
where these projects are to be deployed (Figure 1). to secure
democratic decision making and promote wide public support
for a sustainable energy transition, it is essential to understand what drives public acceptability of energy projects and
how this knowledge can be integrated into project development from the start and during implementation phases.
Public acceptability is a broad concept that refers to people's general evaluation of energy projects, i.e., the extent to
which they favor or disfavor a particular energy project. it
manifests itself in people's opinions as well as their (intended)
actions toward energy projects and can be accompanied
by emotional responses to these projects. Possible public
responses include active resistance, apathy, uncertainty, passive acceptance, support, and embracement. however, public
acceptability typically receives attention from project developers and decision makers only when it challenges a specific
project (e.g., because people protest) or when there is a strong
figure 1. A protest against the building of a wind park in
The Netherlands. The protesters say "no" to wind turbines
but "yes" to solar panels. (©Dagblad van het Noorden/Maaike Wind, used with permission.)
50
ieee power & energy magazine
fear that this may happen. this reflects a somewhat narrow
instrumental approach to acceptability, usually aimed at
legitimizing already developed energy projects. instead, we
advocate an alternative approach that views public acceptability as a necessary and valuable building block for the
quality of the project, informing whether and how these projects should be changed or if new projects need to be developed differently.
Misguided, inaccurate, and simplified assumptions about
public acceptability often lead to ineffective policies that
fail to enhance public support but, rather, inflame conflict
between authorities and developers, on the one side, and the
public, on the other side. We elaborate four such common
simplifications and misunderstandings: 1) public acceptability is merely a not-in-my-back-yard (NiMby) response and
can be affected positively by 2) financial incentives, 3) providing information to people, and 4) the lapse of time. ad hoc
and countereffective solutions are often implemented based
on these misunderstandings. these are often one-size-fitsall solutions failing to take into account that similar energy
projects may be evaluated differently by different communities and individuals. to remedy this, we propose to analyze projects from the very beginning of their development
in terms of key factors and processes that underlie public
acceptability. We discuss alternative, often more promising,
ways to address public acceptability that take these factors
and processes into account. Finally, we end with some concluding remarks on how to better incorporate public acceptability in practice and research.
Common Misunderstandings
About Public Acceptability
Public acceptability Is merely
a NImBY Response
People who object to energy projects are commonly labeled
as NiMbys by the media, policy makers, and industry.
NiMby is an easily used and widely understood concept,
but it is rich in problems as well. it presumes that those who
object have certain negative characteristics, such as being
selfish and motivated only by personal gain, irrational and
overly emotional, ignorant about the scientific or engineering
aspects of energy projects, and parochial (i.e., more interested
in local impacts than national or global benefits). the labeling as simply NiMbys influences the way project developers
and authorities tend to interact with the public about energy
projects and how they attempt to tackle each of these pejorative assumptions: addressing selfishness by offering incentives (often labeled benefits packages), addressing ignorance
by public awareness campaigns that focus on "the facts" (as
experts understand them), and dealing with what they view
as irrationality by avoiding public meetings with angry protestors. however, it is likely that these strategies will fail to
increase public acceptability unless they address people's
genuine concerns, as we will discuss.
january/february 2018
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018
Contents
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - Intro
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - Cover1
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - Cover2
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - Contents
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 2
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 3
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 4
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 5
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 6
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 7
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 8
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 9
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 10
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 11
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 12
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 13
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 14
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 15
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 16
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 17
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 18
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 19
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 20
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 21
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 22
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 23
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 24
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 25
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 26
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 27
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 28
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 29
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 30
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 31
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 32
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 33
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 34
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 35
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 36
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 37
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 38
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 39
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 40
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 41
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 42
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 43
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 44
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 45
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 46
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 47
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 48
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 49
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 50
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 51
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 52
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 53
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 54
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 55
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 56
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 57
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 58
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 59
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 60
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 61
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 62
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 63
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 64
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 65
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 66
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 67
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 68
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 69
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 70
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 71
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 72
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 73
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 74
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 75
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - 76
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - Cover3
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2018 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_091020
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_070820
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_050620
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_030420
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_010220
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_111219
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_091019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_070819
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_050619
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_030419
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_010219
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_111218
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_091018
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_070818
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_050618
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_030418
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_010218
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_111217
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_091017
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_070817
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_050617
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_030417
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_010217
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_111216
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_091016
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_070816
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_050616
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_030416
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_010216
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/powerenergy_010216
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_111215
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_091015
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_070815
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_050615
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_030415
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_010215
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_111214
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_091014
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_070814
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_050614
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_030414
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/pes/powerenergy_010214
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com