Renewable Energy, Authenticity, and Tourism: Social Acceptance of Photovoltaic Installations in a Swiss Alpine Region

• Published in: Mountain research and development Vol. 35; no. 2; pp. 161 - 170
• Main Authors: Michel, Annina Helena, Buchecker, Matthias, Backhaus, Norman
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Department of Psychology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405 The International Mountain Society 01.05.2015; International Mountain Society
• Subjects: Alternative energy sources; Attitudes; authenticity; Avalanches; Ecotourism; landscape change; Landscapes; MountainResearch; Mountains; Photovoltaic cells; Pilot studies; place image; Questionnaires; Renewable energy; Renewable resources; Research and development; Sense of place; Social acceptance; Solar energy; Switzerland; Systems knowledge; Tourism; Switzerland; Alps
• ISSN: 0276-4741; 1994-7151
• DOI: 10.1659/MRD-JOURNAL-D-14-00111.1

With the increasing emergence of renewable energy sites in Switzerland, new impacts on the landscape can be observed. Above the Alpine village of Bellwald, a pilot project testing avalanche barriers as a possible site for photovoltaic installations was inaugurated in 2012. This study focused on social aspects of the project and asked questions about local residents' and tourists' perceptions of and attitudes toward the installations. Its findings reveal that the new elements are not perceived as a drastic intrusion into the landscape, because the view was already affected by the avalanche barriers, which are accepted because of their vital protective function. No significant difference was found between residents' and tourists' evaluation of the new photovoltaic installations. However, different factors influenced the perceptions of these 2 groups. In both groups, conceptions related to place played an important role in the evaluation of possible photovoltaic sites.