Survey: Most Americans Do Not View Wind Farms As Harmful

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Seventy-nine percent of Americans do not believe a large wind farm project is detrimental to their health and welfare, according to the 2009 Saint Index survey of attitudes toward real estate development projects.

Slightly more than one in 10 adults, 11%, say a large wind project could diminish health and welfare.

The fourth annual Saint Index survey involved interviews with 1,000 adults nationwide. The study is conducted by The Saint Consulting Group, which tracks the politics of land use in the U.S, Canada and U.K.


Eighty-two percent of Americans support a wind farm project in their hometown – an increase from 76% a year ago. Opposition to a local wind project dropped to 15%, which is down 5 percentage points from last year, according to the survey.

Forty-three percent of Americans say they support a local power project, an increase from the 38% who expressed support a year ago, and just 23% in 2006.

However, America's not-in-my-back-yard attitude toward local development remains strong. Nearly three out of four Americans, 74%, stated that they do not want new development in their communities, saying their hometown is fine the way it is or is already over-developed.

The economic downturn may temper these attitudes toward commercial development, according to The Saint Consulting Group. Fifty-nine percent of American adults say they are more likely to support new commercial projects in their hometown given the current economic situation.

SOURCE: The Saint Consulting Group

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