Michigan's Energy Future: Expert and Public Opinion on Energy Transitions in Michigan

This study explores expert and public opinion on energy transitions in Michigan. There are high levels of public support for a transition away from coal in Michigan. There are very high levels of public support for solar and wind power in Michigan. There is higher public support for solar power than...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Policy File 2018
Main Authors: Moore, Sharlissa, Anctil, Annick
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
Energy
Institute for Public Policy and Social Research, Michigan State University
Online Access:Request full text
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Summary:This study explores expert and public opinion on energy transitions in Michigan. There are high levels of public support for a transition away from coal in Michigan. There are very high levels of public support for solar and wind power in Michigan. There is higher public support for solar power than wind power, which may be because siting issues related to wind power have been more widely discussed in Michigan than solar siting issues. A large majority (80%) of the Michigan public is interested in leasing solar panels for their homes if it were affordable and available to them and if they owned their rooftop. There is mixed publicsupport for natural gas. The majority of the public is opposed to nuclear power, although this research suggests that there could be higher support of more advanced nuclear technologies that are currently in the R&D stage. Nuclear power has not played a role in the discussion of energy transitions in Michigan. Thescale of energy generation (centralized versus distributed)and who owns renewable energy generation are more contentious issues than a transition to more renewable energy use.