Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy Technologies in Austrian Tourism Regions

Considering the rising demand for decentralized renewable energy capacities it is clear that many more siting and decision-making processes for the energy infrastructure have to take place under varying frameworks and local conditions, implying a higher potential for conflicts arising from lacking social acceptance. The paper aims to exploit this field by focusing on renewable energy technologies (wind and photovoltaic) in tourism regions in Austria and applying a mixed-method design (renewable energy modelling, visualisation techniques, focus groups, and conjoint analysis). The research question is: What are the main drivers that determine acceptance of renewable energy scenarios among the local population and tourists? The paper will distinguish three levels of analysis: Contextual, personal and social-psychological (Devine-Wright 2007). Factors studied at a contextual level of analysis are directly related to the particular nature of a renewable energy technologies (RET) project. For wind farms two frequently identified factors at this level are noise and visual impact. The personal level of analysis is concerned with factors directly related to the person. Devine-Wright (2007) highlights variables such as age, gender and class as the primary focus of studies at this level. Finally, the social-psychological level is concerned with variables such as attitudes, belief but equally constructs such as place attachment and place identity. In this respect, the visual impact of planned and/or already built RETs has to be highlighted as the triggering aspect that then clashes with underlying social-psychological constructs. The central role the physical appearance of renewable energy infrastructure assumes is further underlined by research findings that have shown how the noise produced by wind turbine, or better, the nuisance this causes, is highly dependent on how the individual assesses the visual impact of this structure. With the ‘intrusion’ of RETs into landscapes, as countries push for more renewables, an interesting field of research arises. As the rural economy potentially returns to a physical exploitation, but in a non-traditional way, it clashes with the other forms of use such as the recreational use of rural landscapes central to tourism. Many tourism regions in Austria do, or will in fact, face that conflict as RETs are developed in and pushed into tourism regions. The complexity of this is further increased by the fact that the tourism industry is often characterized by high energy use and is therefore part of a problem with a solution it might not be overly willing to accept. In terms of affected individuals this concerns local residents, as much as professionals in the tourism sector and tourists themselves; each group with their own subset of values, exigencies and preferences. It is for this very focused but multifaceted context that we argue that the particular case of social acceptance of RETs in tourism regions allows for a highly rewarding scientific investigation of social acceptance issues. This does not only concern the different audiences, as mentioned above, but also the various realizations contexts from mountains to plains and the relative importance that is therefore attributed to certain sights.