Agricultural landowner perspectives on wind energy development in Alberta, Canada: insights from the lens of energy justice and democracy

IF 2.4 Q3 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

Environmental Sociology Pub Date : 2023-08-15 DOI:10.1080/23251042.2023.2247627

Max Chewinski, S. Anders, J. Parkins

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

ABSTRACT The political and economic landscape of Alberta, Canada, is deeply affected by fossil fuel extraction, thus limiting progress toward energy transition. Although transition is slowed by resistance to renewable energy technologies, public perspectives on these projects are diverse, with localized sensitives that are often not well understood. To improve our understanding of support and opposition to wind energy development, we draw on concepts of energy democracy, distributive and procedural justice. Utilizing a factorial survey experiment, and latent class analysis to measure these concepts with a sample of 401 large-scale agricultural landowners, we identify three distinct groups of individuals with unique preferences that are grounded in how individuals view and support wind energy. Contrasting most respondents with moderate views on wind projects, we identify a distinct group of supportive landowners when community benefits are well defined. A third group is defined largely by opposition to wind energy whereby justice concerns are associated with distancing their land from the impacts of wind turbines. Our conclusions identify the value of careful and transparent project design in consultation with local communities and affected landowners to avoid opposition noted here and in previous studies.

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加拿大阿尔伯塔省农业土地所有者对风能开发的看法:从能源正义和民主的角度看问题

摘要加拿大阿尔伯塔省的政治和经济形势深受化石燃料开采的影响，从而限制了能源转型的进展。尽管对可再生能源技术的抵制减缓了转型，但公众对这些项目的看法是多样的，本地化的敏感性往往不太清楚。为了提高我们对支持和反对风能开发的理解，我们借鉴了能源民主、分配和程序正义的概念。利用因子调查实验和潜在类别分析，以401名大型农业土地所有者为样本来衡量这些概念，我们确定了三组不同的个人，他们具有独特的偏好，这些偏好基于个人如何看待和支持风能。与大多数对风电项目持温和看法的受访者相比，当社区利益得到明确界定时，我们发现了一组独特的支持土地所有者。第三类主要是反对风能，即正义问题与使他们的土地远离风力涡轮机的影响有关。我们的结论确定了与当地社区和受影响的土地所有者协商进行谨慎透明的项目设计的价值，以避免这里和以前的研究中提到的反对意见。

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来源期刊

Environmental Sociology ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES-

CiteScore

4.60

自引率

12.00%

发文量

期刊介绍： Environmental Sociology is dedicated to applying and advancing the sociological imagination in relation to a wide variety of environmental challenges, controversies and issues, at every level from the global to local, from ‘world culture’ to diverse local perspectives. As an international, peer-reviewed scholarly journal, Environmental Sociology aims to stretch the conceptual and theoretical boundaries of both environmental and mainstream sociology, to highlight the relevance of sociological research for environmental policy and management, to disseminate the results of sociological research, and to engage in productive dialogue and debate with other disciplines in the social, natural and ecological sciences. Contributions may utilize a variety of theoretical orientations including, but not restricted to: critical theory, cultural sociology, ecofeminism, ecological modernization, environmental justice, organizational sociology, political ecology, political economy, post-colonial studies, risk theory, social psychology, science and technology studies, globalization, world-systems analysis, and so on. Cross- and transdisciplinary contributions are welcome where they demonstrate a novel attempt to understand social-ecological relationships in a manner that engages with the core concerns of sociology in social relationships, institutions, practices and processes. All methodological approaches in the environmental social sciences – qualitative, quantitative, integrative, spatial, policy analysis, etc. – are welcomed. Environmental Sociology welcomes high-quality submissions from scholars around the world.