5. Discussion This study was designed to investigate the relationship between wind farm expectations, degree of expectation satisfactions, andattitudes toward wind energy in a rural area that has seen windenergy development and decades of population loss. This surveyindicated respondents with stronger environmental attitudes weremore likely to expect more negative impacts to the environment(wildlife interference, health impacts, decreases in visual beauty)and were less satisfied with the perceived economic developmentof wind energy in their community (job creation, economic benefitsto the County, tax benefits, decreases in energy prices). This findingsuggests that individuals with high environmental attitudes prior-itize the conservation of landscape for its natural setting over theeconomic gains associated with development of renewable energy.Written comments from survey respondents echo this view, withsome commenters expressing a need to preserve “pristine prairie”from wind energy development and skepticism over economic ben-efits they perceived to only benefit a few. The finding that residentswith pro-environmental attitudes may oppose renewable energyprojects has been previously reported [57]; and some studies usingthe NEP scale have found it to be the largest predictor of windenergy attitudes [29].