The Impact of Wind Power Projects on Residential Property Values ...

1. Introduction
<strong>Wind</strong> power development has expanded dramatically in recent years (GWEC, 2009). Although
the percent <strong>of</strong> electricity supplied to the U.S. and globally from wind power projects installed
through 2008 remains relatively low (1.9% and 1.5%, respectively) (Wiser and Bolinger, 2009),
there are expectations that those percentages will rise and that wind energy could contribute a
significant percentage <strong>of</strong> future electricity supply (GWEC, 2008; Wiser and Hand, 2010). Most
recently, President Obama, in his 2009 State <strong>of</strong> the Union address, called for a doubling <strong>of</strong>
renewable energy in three years (by 2012), and in 2008 the U.S. Department <strong>of</strong> Energy produced
a report that analyzed the feasibility <strong>of</strong> meeting 20% <strong>of</strong> U.S. electricity demand with wind
energy by 2030 (US DOE, 2008).
To meet these goals, a significant amount <strong>of</strong> wind project development activity would be
required. <strong>The</strong> average size <strong>of</strong> wind power projects built in the U.S. in 2007 and 2008 was
approximately 100 MW (Wiser and Bolinger, 2009) and the total amount <strong>of</strong> capacity required to
reach 20% wind electricity is roughly 300,000 MW (US DOE, 2008). <strong>The</strong>refore, to achieve 20%
wind electricity by 2030, a total <strong>of</strong> 3,000 wind facilities may need to be sited and permitted.
Most permitting processes in the U.S. require some form <strong>of</strong> environmental impact assessment,
and some form <strong>of</strong> public involvement in the siting process. Though surveys show that public
acceptance is high in general for wind energy (e.g., Wolsink, 2000; Firestone and Kempton,
2006), a variety <strong>of</strong> concerns are <strong>of</strong>ten expressed on the local level that can impact the length and
outcome <strong>of</strong> the siting and permitting process. <strong>The</strong>se concerns range from the potential impacts
<strong>of</strong> wind projects on wildlife habitat and mortality, radar and communications systems, ground
transportation and historic and cultural resources, to aesthetic and property value concerns as
well as potential nuisance and health impacts. As a result, a variety <strong>of</strong> siting and permitting
guidelines (AWEA, 2008) and impact assessments (NAS, 2007) have been completed.
Surveys <strong>of</strong> local communities considering wind facilities have consistently ranked adverse
impacts on aesthetics and property values in the top tier <strong>of</strong> concerns (e.g., BBC R&C, 2005;
Firestone and Kempton, 2006). Developers <strong>of</strong> wind energy echo this assessment: they ranked
aesthetics and property values as two <strong>of</strong> the top concerns (first and third respectively) for
individuals or communities opposed to wind power development (Paul, 2006). Local residents
have even brought suit against a developer over property values (Dale Rankin v. FPL, 2008), and
some developers have responded to these concerns by <strong>of</strong>fering “neighbor agreements” that
compensate nearby homeowners for the potential impacts <strong>of</strong> wind projects.
<strong>The</strong> two concerns <strong>of</strong> aesthetics and property values are intrinsically linked. It is well established
that a home’s value will be increased if a high-quality scenic vista is enjoyed from the property
(e.g., Seiler et al., 2001). Alternatively, it is reasonable to assume that if a home’s scenic vista
overlaps with a view <strong>of</strong> a disamenity, the home might be devalued, as has been found for highvoltage
transmission lines (HVTL) (Kroll and Priestley, 1992; Des-Rosiers, 2002). Whether a
view <strong>of</strong> wind turbines similarly impacts home values is a key topic <strong>of</strong> debate in local siting
decisions. Aesthetics alone, however, is not the only pathway through which wind projects
might impact residential property values. Distance to the nearest wind turbine, for example,
might also have an impact if various nuisance effects are prominent, such as turbine noise,
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