Public perception of offshore wind in Ireland

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dc.contributor.authorCronin, Yvonne
dc.contributor.authorCummins, Valerie
dc.contributor.authorWolsztynski, Eric
dc.contributor.funderScience Foundation Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderEuropean Regional Development Funden
dc.contributor.funderUniversity College Corken
dc.contributor.funderBrookfield Renewable Partnersen
dc.contributor.funderDP Energy, Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderEnerco Energy, Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderEquinoren
dc.contributor.funderENGIE Renewables, Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderESB, Electricity Supply Board, Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderSimply Blue Energy, Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderSSE Renewables, Irelanden
dc.contributor.funderStatkraft, Irelanden
dc.date.accessioned2022-01-27T15:42:21Z
dc.date.available2022-01-27T15:42:21Z
dc.date.issued2021-10-05
dc.date.updated2022-01-27T15:29:06Z
dc.description.abstractPublic attitude towards onshore wind farm development in Ireland has been extensively investigated. Prior to this study, there was little or no understanding of the perception of the Irish public of offshore wind farms (OSWFs). At this critical juncture in the development of the sector, it is necessary to gauge public opinion regarding offshore wind farms. Data was collected using an online survey (n = 1154) between May and June 2019. Results detail the opinions and attitudes of the Irish public toward the development of renewable energy projects in Irish waters. Demographics showed a 49% male, 51% female split. Education levels and age ranges roughly follow the same distribution levels as seen in the 2016 census of Ireland. Results indicate that attitudes to planned offshore wind farms change significantly with education levels. The evidence suggests that the link between climate change mitigation by energy emissions reduction and offshore wind farms is an important aspect of public perception that supports the development of the sector in Ireland. Most of those questioned believed that Ireland is too reliant on foreign energy and agreed that Ireland is running out of its limited fossil fuel reserves. The majority of people also believed that the government is not doing enough to reduce carbon emissions and should invest in offshore wind farms. Sixty-three percent of those surveyed believed that offshore wind farms will increase Ireland’s job creation potential. A clear majority of those who took part in the survey were in favour of offshore wind farms both on a local and national level. Just over half of the participants believed that offshore wind farms are the best solution to our energy situation. Thirty-seven percent of respondents trust offshore wind farm developers and 34% indicate that they were neutral on the subject. Fifteen percent of those who took part in the survey indicated that they mistrust developers. Approximately half of respondents had previous experience of offshore wind farms (the majority of whom had experienced offshore wind farms on holiday). A minority group had experience of offshore wind farms as a result of their daily commute or had an offshore wind farm in the vicinity of their homes. The data confirmed the hypothesis that experience of offshore wind farms has a significant effect on attitudes towards them. Results show that those with experience of offshore wind farms are more positive towards offshore wind farm development in Irish waters, than those with no experience of offshore wind farms. To further investigate the perception of those who are regularly exposed to offshore wind farms, a focus group involving five members of the public with regular exposure to Ireland’s only wind farm, Arklow Bank Wind Park, was held. The scope of sentiment expressed towards the offshore turbines ranged from benign to extremely positive. Returning to the results of the national survey; in terms of the effect on wildlife, tourism and aesthetics, respondents found offshore wind farms to be relatively unobtrusive and in general a positive addition to the sea scape. This report provides a resource for the offshore wind industry and policy makers alike. The data would suggest that an opportunity exists to create a public awareness campaign as a next step, to build on the favourable national mood and public understanding of the role of offshore wind in decarbonising the economy.en
dc.description.sponsorshipScience Foundation Ireland (SFI under Grants No 12/RC/2302 and No 12/RC/2289-P2, co-funded under the European Regional Development Fund)en
dc.description.statusPeer revieweden
dc.description.versionPublished Versionen
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.articleid104814en
dc.identifier.citationCronin, Y., Cummins, V. and Wolsztynski, E. (2021) 'Public Perception of Offshore Wind in Ireland', Marine Policy, 134, 104814, (9 pp). doi: 10.1016/j.marpol.2021.104814en
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.marpol.2021.104814en
dc.identifier.endpage9en
dc.identifier.issn0308-597X
dc.identifier.journaltitleMarine Policyen
dc.identifier.startpage1en
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10468/12496
dc.identifier.volume134en
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherElsevieren
dc.relation.projectinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/SFI/SFI Research Centres/12/RC/2289/IE/INSIGHT - Irelands Big Data and Analytics Research Centre/en
dc.relation.projectinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/SFI/SFI Research Centres/12/RC/2302/IE/Marine Renewable Energy Ireland (MaREI) - The SFI Centre for Marine Renewable Energy Research/en
dc.relation.urihttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X21004255
dc.rights© 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY licenseen
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/en
dc.subjectOffshore winden
dc.subjectIrelanden
dc.subjectRenewablesen
dc.subjectPublic perceptionen
dc.subjectStakeholder engagementen
dc.subjectRenewable energyen
dc.titlePublic perception of offshore wind in Irelanden
dc.typeArticle (peer-reviewed)en
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