A study released by the Center for Community Studies at Jefferson Community College in Watertown, N.Y., has found that residents in Lewis County overwhelmingly support development of wind farms in their community.
The study, ‘The Second Annual Lewis County Survey of the Community,’ found that 79% of residents support an expansion of wind farms in the county. The study also found that 70% of Lewis County residents believe wind farms have a positive impact on their community, while an additional 19% said it has had no impact. Only 5% viewed them as having a negative impact.
‘These results are particularly meaningful because they are based on the opinions of people who have lived within and around wind farms for several years now,’ says Carol E. Murphy, executive director of the Alliance for Clean Energy New York.
Lewis County is home to the 321 MW Maple Ridge wind farm, the largest wind farm east of the Mississippi and approximately one-third of currently operating wind resources in New York. Over 35% of the respondents in the survey said that they could see wind turbines from their home. Support for wind farms was high among men and women, across age groups, income and education levels, and among both homeowners and renters.
Lewis County residents also expressed strong support for other clean energy resources, specifically hydropower and solar energy.
SOURCE: Alliance for Clean Energy New York
