Opposition to wind power
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While much of the opposition came from people who were genuinely (although usually needlessly) concerned about wind power developments, a great deal also came from people and organisations with financial links to the fossil fuel industry. Obviously wind power in particular, and renewable energy in general, is a great threat to the fossil fuel industry. Of course there is big money in the fossil fuel industry and where there is big money there is often great dishonesty, consider the tobacco industry.
The justification for the opposition to wind power developments included:
- False claims of wind turbines causing ill-health including weird
claims of more than 200 symptoms in humans and animals blamed on wind farms;
- False claims of wind farms reducing
land values in the vicinity;
- Exaggerated claims of
wind turbine noise;
- Greatly exaggerated claims of the
adverse impact of wind farms on agriculture;
- False claims of increased
numbers of fires and difficulty of access for fire fighting aircraft;
- Weird claims:
- A 60,000 times exaggeration of the time it would take for a wind farm to make up for the CO2 released in the production of the concrete foundations of the turbines;
- "We know that these turbines can shift spray drift from one paddock to another and, if the spray is not compatible with that crop in the other paddock, it will kill it."
(See Heartland Farmers.)
- "Woolworths will not buy meat from sheep that have been grazing under wind turbines." (Heartland Farmers again)
- A 60,000 times exaggeration of the time it would take for a wind farm to make up for the CO2 released in the production of the concrete foundations of the turbines;
- Greatly exaggerated claims about sleep disturbance and wind turbines.
Wind farms reduce greenhouse emissions by displacing fossil fuelled power stations and they save lives by reducing the air pollution from the burning of fossil fuels that kills millions of people each year. So those who oppose a wind farm development are most likely prioritising their personal preferences over the welfare of the planet and of future generations.
There can be little doubt that quite a bit of opposition to wind power comes from those who see it as a threat to the profits that they are getting from the fossil fuel industry. The coal industry is facing terminal decline and this has caused panic among those who have invested millions of dollars in it.
I have argued elsewhere that
dishonestly opposing renewable energy is a crime against humanity.
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Opposition to the coal industry
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All well informed people with a conscience have ample reason to oppose the coal industry and plenty of evidence to support their stance.
Anyone who wants to protect the world that future generations are to live in will oppose the coal industry and fossil fuel industries in general.
Unlike opposition to the wind industry, there is no need for arguments to be confined to selfish motives nor is there a need to desperately look for arguments of dubious veracity, or arguments that are simply false.
The coal industry is in terminal decline for very good reasons.
These things being so, there is no need for opponents of the coal industry to exaggerate or lie.
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What motivates the opposition?
What motivates the opposition to wind power?
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Supporters of, and investors in, the fossil fuel industry recognise that renewable energy in general, and wind power in particular, is a great threat to their livelihoods and wealth.
The better informed of them would realise that the coal industry in particular has
no future, but they will try to support it by rubbishing renewables as long as they can.
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Perceived intrusion on people's space, the visibility of the turbines, the noise that they make (or that people fear that they make), mostly unfounded fear of reduced land values, unfounded fear of health impacts of nearby turbines.
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Envy of neighbours who are seen to be going to profit from the development while the person opposing the development feels he/she is missing out. Unfortunately, in this world that is in desperate need of altruism, a great many people are selfish.
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Fear of change: some people are uncomfortable with substantial change.
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Ideological opposition: "Wind farms are a Greeny obsession and I'm opposed to Greenies" and similar feelings.
"Coal has been reliable in the past, we shouldn't risk changing to renewables."
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A (false) perception that wind power is
more expensive than more conventional power generation methods and that this is to blame for rising power prices.
In fact
electricity prices have risen less in South Australia, which has a high level of wind power, than in the eastern, coal-powered, states.
- Resentment that financial incentives are being given to renewable energy. (These people seem to be ignorant of, or don't want to know about, the huge subsidies going to the fossil fuel industry.)
What motivates the opposition to the coal industry?
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Awareness of the climate change and ocean acidification caused by the burning of fossil fuels
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Resentment of the many, largely hidden, financial incentives and subsidies being given to the coal industry
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Awareness of the millions of people killed each year by the air pollution from the burning of coal
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A desire for a more sustainable future
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A desire for a viable future for children, grandchildren, future generations and the future of all non-human species
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Knowledge of the damage done by mining
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A desire to protect groundwater from the damage caused by coal mining
- A desire to protect valuable farm land from destruction by open-cut mining