Perception of landscapes, changed by the installation of solar power plants

Večanje deleža rabe obnovljivih virov energije (OVE) je med ključnimi ukrepi prehoda k bolj vzdržni produkciji energije. Hitra implementacija objektov za rabo OVE povzroča obsežne spremembe krajine, ki pogosto izzovejo nasprotovanje javnosti. Rezultate takšnih sprememb imenujemo energetske krajine. Raziskava je namenjena ugotavljanju opaznosti sončnih elektrarn (SE) v zaznavanju krajine, določanju značaja energetske krajine in odkrivanju njenih pomenov. Brez zavedanja, da gre za raziskovanje vpliva SE na zaznavanje krajine, so prostovoljci obiskali krajine s SE in dokumentirali svoja opažanja s fotografiranjem in zapisovanjem, nato pa o njih razpravljali v fokusnih skupinah. Izsledki so bili preverjeni z javnomnenjsko anketo. Rezultati kažejo, da so SE zelo opazen objekt v krajini, saj jih je od 28 udeležencev terenskih ogledov fotografiralo 25. Med fotografijami jih je bilo 42 % opisanih negativno, 23 % deljeno in 27 % pozitivno. Večinsko so bile SE opisane kot neskladne z ruralnim značajem krajine, saj vanjo vnašajo modernost in občutek industrializacije, za nekatere pa je bila skladnost SE s krajino odvisna od njene oblikovanosti. Poleg vizualnega in značajskega neskladja s krajino so udeleženci ob opisovanju SE pogosto izpostavljali tudi vrednote, povezane s trajnostjo. V anketi so bile krajine s SE ocenjene kot bolj moderne in posebne. Rezultati kažejo, da energetska krajina še ni prepoznaven tip krajine in da je z domiselnim oblikovanjem, predvsem sledenjem obstoječim strukturam v krajini, možno izboljšati skladnost med SE in krajino ter povečati družbeno sprejemljivost posega.Increasing the share of renewable energy sources (RES) is one of the key measures for the transition to more sustainable energy production. The rapid deployment of RES facilities causes extensive changes in the landscape, which often provoke public opposition. The results of such changes are called energy landscapes. This research determines the noticeability of solar power plants (SPP) in the perception of the landscape, character of the energy landscape and its meanings. Unaware that this was an exploration of the impact of SPP on landscape perception, volunteers visited landscapes with SPP and documented their observations by photographing and writing, and then discussed them in focus groups. The results were verified by a survey of public opinion. The findings show that SPPs are a very noticeable objects in the landscape, as 25 of the 28 field trip participants took photographs of them. 42% of the photographs were described negatively, 23% mixed and 27% positively. For the most part, SPPs have been described as inconsistent with the rural character of the landscape, as they bring modernity and a sense of industrialization into it, and for some, the SPP\u27s coherence with the landscape depended on its design. In addition to the visual and character mismatch with the landscape, participants often highlighted values related to sustainability when describing SPP. In the survey, landscapes with SPP were assessed as more modern and special. The results show that the energy landscape is not yet a recognizable type of landscape and that by careful design, especially by following the existing structures in the landscape, it is possible to improve the coherence between SPP and landscape and increase the social acceptance of the intervention