**2. Findings**

452 International Perspectives on Global Environmental Change

One of the solutions to increased greenhouse gas emissions is the renewable energy of wind power. Wind power is currently the most rapidly growing energy source in the world (Acciona Energy, 2006; BTM Consult ApS, 2009; Firestone, Kempton, Krueger & Loper, 2005, p. 75; Liebmann, 2003, p. 4; Mercer, 2003, p. 10). Wind farms have been established in many countries to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and, at the same time, to increase the production of renewable energy. Wind turbines can be installed onshore and offshore. In spite of positive effects on the environment, i.e. reducing CO2 emissions (see Section 8.), wind farms have been opposed for environmental reasons: Paradoxically, according to Lothian (2008, p. 196), "while addressing one environmental concern, the system is being opposed because of another environmental concern, namely the perceived negative impact on the environment, particularly on landscape quality". There is, however, a strong commitment of many countries to increase the share of renewable energy and this has resulted in a significant increase in the number of wind turbines. The World Wind Energy Association (WWEA) provides a table showing the added capacity of approximately six

1 USA 35.159 1.200 36.300 2 China 26.010 7.800 33.800 3 Germany 25.777 660 26.400 4 Spain 19.149 400 19.500 5 India 10.925 1.200 12.100 6 Italy 4.850 450 5.300 7 France 4.521 500 5.000 8 UK 4.092 500 4.600 9 Portugal 3.535 230 3.800 10 Denmark 3.497 190 3.700 Rest of the world 21.698 2.870 24.500 Total 159.213 16.000 175.000

The table demonstrates that the use of wind power is on the increase overall. The changes in the table refer to a time of approximately six months. Looking at the near past, in the 1990s, Germany had the fastest growth in the industry, followed by Spain, Denmark and India (European Commission, 1997, table 2.2). The German wind farming industry in 2000 was the second largest in the world (Johnson & Jacobsson, 2000, p. 2), generating the highest amount of wind powered energy in the world (Nelson, 2005, p. 8; Reeves & Beck, 2003, p. 9; Rodriguez et al., 2002, p. 1089). The growing trend for Germany has continued (Macintosh & Downie, 2006, p. 1), however, Table 1 demonstrates that China, the United States of America

Added capacity June 2010 (MW) Total capacity June 2010 (MW)

2009, p. 5).

months (end of 2009 to June 2010):

Position Country Total capacity end

Table 1. Wind Power Worldwide June 2010

2009 (MW)

www.wwindea.org/home/index2.php?option+com\_jce&task=popup&img=imag

and India have overtaken Germany during the last (at least) six months.

Evidence of human influence also has been detected in ocean warming, sea-level rise, continental-average temperatures, temperature extremes and wind patterns. This conclusion is consistent with the observed melting of glaciers and ice sheets (CSIRO,

#### **2.1 The Australian wind power industry – Some facts**

In 2008/09 Australia produced 438 million tonnes (Mt) of raw black coal, 334 Mt of black coal was available for the domestic use and for export (2008 Australian Coal). The CSIRO 2003-2011 finds that

…coal is Australia's largest export and a major contributor to the national economy. It is

the primary fuel for power generation worldwide and provides more than 80% of Australia's electricity supply (CSIRO 2003-2011).

Coal is, however, a major contributor to the world's greenhouse gas emissions. According to the CSIRO 2203-2011, current power technologies account for more than one third of Australia's emissions alone. This means that, on the one hand, the profitable coal export industry has to be considered and, on the other hand, the environment. Taking a long term view, the risk of further CO2 pollution is high and our options are limited. Clarke, who has researched climate change and Australia's wind energy projects for many years, contemplates the belief of many that 'Australia can't make any difference' and summarises their negative attitude as follows:

Australia only produces about 1.5% of the world's greenhouse gasses. If we were to cut our emissions to nothing tomorrow, it would make very little difference to the world. Therefore we would be foolish to risk crippling our economy (Clarke, 2008, p. 8).

Bond (2009) is more specific than the CSIRO regarding the production of electricity and finds that in 2006/2007, "83% of Australia's electricity is produced using coal" (p. 2).

<sup>2</sup>Please refer to Section 3 for some examples.

Wind Farming and the Not-in-My-Backyard Syndrome: A Literature Review

developers and governments face when planning a wind farm.

**Australia** 

projects.

importantly, wind resource.

opponents?

Regarding Australia's Challenge in Relation to Climate Change and CO2 Emissions 455

Clarke (2009) also considers the lack of electricity transmission lines, and anticipates a "shortage of working capital due to the financial break-down" (p. 3). Despite these impediments, it is argued here that 16% wind power representing renewable energy could be improved and that the 1.3% of electricity produced from wind power should be increased. The international comparison regarding electricity produced by wind power is as follows: Denmark produces 19%, Spain and Portugal 9%, Germany 6%, Ireland 6%, USA 1.9% (IEA, 2009, p. 10). What are the barriers in Australia to develop and to use to a greater extend facilities that can provide clean, renewable energy? In 2010 four projects, worth 477 MW of wind power, were abandoned or suspended. Here are some examples of challenges

**3. Case studies – Some challenges when wind farming is considered in** 

In 2008, wind energy provided 487,537 Australian households with electricity, which presented 1.3% of national electric demand (IEA, 2009, p. 79), however, as mentioned earlier, more than 80% of electricity (CSIRO) or, more specifically, 83% (Bond (2009, p. 2) was coalfired. Let's look at some of the challenges associated with the development of wind energy

In February 2009 Acciona Energy began generating green power in Waubra (approximately 150 km west-north-west of Melbourne, the capital city of the State of Victoria, and 35 km north-west of Ballarat, Victoria). The wind farm consists of 128 turbines of 1.5MW, the installed capacity is 192MW, offsetting 635,000 tonnes of CO2-e annually (Acciona Project Snapshot). Acciona then wanted to establish another wind farm, Waubra North, close to the township of Evansford. But some challenges emerged: According to Radical Green Watch (February 13, 2010), the Pyreness Landscape Guardians organised a meeting in early 2010. This meeting "brought together sixty wind farm opponents from across the state". At the meeting a petition was signed requesting a moratorium on wind farms until health studies were undertaken. A representative of Acciona, present at that meeting, stated that "the company was still conducting investigations of the site at Evansford". Acciona (Newsletter, June 15, 2011) announced that "its early feasibility work on the site at Waubra North …has indicated a wind farm in that location would not be viable"(p. 1). The company had undertaken investigations in relation to the environment, flora, fauna and, most

The further north you travel from Waubra we found the wind resource to be less viable, primarily because of different topography (Acciona Newsletter, June 15, 2011, p. 1). Interesting here are some political connotations. According to Courtice (July 30, 2011), a former member of the Liberal Party sits on the board of the anti-wind power Waubra Foundation, and a businessman, who was involved in oil, gas and mineral exploration companies, set up the foundation. Did Acciona Energy know about these powerful

Some other issues are worth noting because they relate to issues of NIMBYism. Firstly, there is the deliberate creation of "fear, uncertainty and doubt" (FUD) (Courtice, July 30, 2011) by the opponents of wind energy. FUD undermine an objective debate. Secondly, here are some facts about Acciona and its involvement in the local community of Waubra: Waubra has, according to information on the net, a population of 494, it is not far away from Melbourne and Ballarat, and its football team, the Waubra Kangaroos, has won several

Australia "is the rich world's worst per capita greenhouse gas emitter due to a heavy reliance on ageing coal-fired power stations for electricity generation" (Taylor & Grubel, 9.7.2011, p.1). This is a worrying aspect. Data published by the United Nations Statistics Division (2008a) on carbon dioxide emission shows that Australia is in sixteenth position when the percentage of global total CO2 emission is considered: as a nation, 399,219.00 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide are emitted annually. Per capita Australians emit 18.94 tonnes of CO2 per capita (United Nations Statistics Division, 2008b).

Despite challenges, the present Australian Federal Government is committed to generate 20% of Australia's electricity from renewable energy by the year 2020 for a transition to a low-carbon economy (Combet, 2010, pp. 1-4). Interestingly, Australia was listed twenty third in the world in 2004-2005 for capacity of wind generation (Nelson, 2005, p. 8), but it was the first country to implement a mandatory requirement of energy retainers (MRET), i.e. that there be a certain amount of renewable energy target (Kann, 2009, p. 1; Macintosh & Downie, 2006, p. 1; Mercer, 2003, p. 17; Nelson, 2005, p. 3). Since the inception of MRET, wind power has been the fastest growing source of energy in Australia (Macintosh & Downie, 2006, p. 1; Nelson, 2005, p. 3). Wind power accounts for 16% of the renewable energy market in Australia (Clean Energy Council, 2009), but only 1.3% of its electricity comes from wind power (IEA, 2009, p. 79). Australia has various state based national incentive programs to promote wind energy, there is, for instance, the Green Power national accreditation program, and there are initiatives of the Department of Climate Change (IEA, 2008, pp. 79-84). According to the International Energy Agency, in 2008:


Since 1997, Australian installed wind power has grown by 75% (Clarke, 2008, p. 4) which implies that things are moving into the direction of renewable, clean energy. Garnaut (Update 2011a) recommends that "Australia should be ready to calibrate its emissions reductions proportionately to the global mitigation effort" (p. 13) and that "low emissions technology" should be a vital part of the mitigation effort (p. 39). And Diesendorf (2003/2004), promoting Australian sustainable energy for about twenty-five years, argues that

… in replacing a coal-fired power station with a mix of energy efficiency, wind power, bioenergy and gas, the economic savings from energy efficiency will be so large that they could pay for the additional costs of renewable energy (p. 2).

Australia is a land of wide open spaces, its size is 7.7 million square kilometres, its population is 22,650,000, and in 2001, almost 85% of the population lived within 50 km of the coast line (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2006). The inside of the country is vast, but this vastness has disadvantages and can, according to Clarke (2010/2011, pp. 4-5), present limits to the development of wind farms:


Australia "is the rich world's worst per capita greenhouse gas emitter due to a heavy reliance on ageing coal-fired power stations for electricity generation" (Taylor & Grubel, 9.7.2011, p.1). This is a worrying aspect. Data published by the United Nations Statistics Division (2008a) on carbon dioxide emission shows that Australia is in sixteenth position when the percentage of global total CO2 emission is considered: as a nation, 399,219.00 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide are emitted annually. Per capita Australians emit 18.94

Despite challenges, the present Australian Federal Government is committed to generate 20% of Australia's electricity from renewable energy by the year 2020 for a transition to a low-carbon economy (Combet, 2010, pp. 1-4). Interestingly, Australia was listed twenty third in the world in 2004-2005 for capacity of wind generation (Nelson, 2005, p. 8), but it was the first country to implement a mandatory requirement of energy retainers (MRET), i.e. that there be a certain amount of renewable energy target (Kann, 2009, p. 1; Macintosh & Downie, 2006, p. 1; Mercer, 2003, p. 17; Nelson, 2005, p. 3). Since the inception of MRET, wind power has been the fastest growing source of energy in Australia (Macintosh & Downie, 2006, p. 1; Nelson, 2005, p. 3). Wind power accounts for 16% of the renewable energy market in Australia (Clean Energy Council, 2009), but only 1.3% of its electricity comes from wind power (IEA, 2009, p. 79). Australia has various state based national incentive programs to promote wind energy, there is, for instance, the Green Power national accreditation program, and there are initiatives of the Department of Climate Change (IEA,

tonnes of CO2 per capita (United Nations Statistics Division, 2008b).

2008, pp. 79-84). According to the International Energy Agency, in 2008:


they could pay for the additional costs of renewable energy (p. 2).

 The size and cost of cranes that are used for turbine erection, Size and weight of components that must be transported by road,

limits to the development of wind farms:

Material fatigue.

Potential for aviation and radar interference,

equivalent to 784,610 cars been taken off the road per year, - total capital investment was A\$2.207 billion Agency (IEA, 2009, p. 81).



Since 1997, Australian installed wind power has grown by 75% (Clarke, 2008, p. 4) which implies that things are moving into the direction of renewable, clean energy. Garnaut (Update 2011a) recommends that "Australia should be ready to calibrate its emissions reductions proportionately to the global mitigation effort" (p. 13) and that "low emissions technology" should be a vital part of the mitigation effort (p. 39). And Diesendorf (2003/2004), promoting Australian sustainable energy for about twenty-five years, argues

… in replacing a coal-fired power station with a mix of energy efficiency, wind power, bioenergy and gas, the economic savings from energy efficiency will be so large that

Australia is a land of wide open spaces, its size is 7.7 million square kilometres, its population is 22,650,000, and in 2001, almost 85% of the population lived within 50 km of the coast line (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2006). The inside of the country is vast, but this vastness has disadvantages and can, according to Clarke (2010/2011, pp. 4-5), present


that

Clarke (2009) also considers the lack of electricity transmission lines, and anticipates a "shortage of working capital due to the financial break-down" (p. 3). Despite these impediments, it is argued here that 16% wind power representing renewable energy could be improved and that the 1.3% of electricity produced from wind power should be increased. The international comparison regarding electricity produced by wind power is as follows: Denmark produces 19%, Spain and Portugal 9%, Germany 6%, Ireland 6%, USA 1.9% (IEA, 2009, p. 10). What are the barriers in Australia to develop and to use to a greater extend facilities that can provide clean, renewable energy? In 2010 four projects, worth 477 MW of wind power, were abandoned or suspended. Here are some examples of challenges developers and governments face when planning a wind farm.
