These are bad days for critics of wind power. Wind is America's lowest cost source of new electric power in large areas of the country. Wind power continues to grow strongly. And arguments used to attack wind keep getting knocked down by stubborn facts.
For example, a common claim is that wind turbines depress home prices. To some, that claim is plausible. But what do the facts show?
Done by researchers from the University of Connecticut and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a study looked at 122,000 transactions in Massachusetts near wind turbines from 1998 to 2012.
http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20140110%2FNEWS%2F401100327%2F-1%2FNEWS.
The study is exhaustive and impressive. It's findings are clear. Wind turbines do not impact housing prices or the rate at which homes sell.
Will this or other similar studies stop critics attacking wind and falsely asserting that wind turbines hurt home values? Probably not.
But hope springs eternal that policymakers and media will know better than to take seriously such claims.
No comments:
Post a Comment