NIMBY Syndrome

NIMBY is an acronym that stands for “not in my backyard.” It is a term applied to a social phenomenon that occurs when a significant number of people in a local social, geographic, or political group opposes some event. NIMBY, as it is generally used, has a negative connotation when it is applied against a particular group and is usually employed by those parties who are in favor of the event or development in question. When referred to as a general phenomenon, it is frequently called NIMBY syndrome. One of the earliest uses of the term NIMBY was in an article in the Christian Science Monitor in 1980.

NIMBY syndrome is a form of social or political activism that occurs when the members of a particular group oppose an event or development in their neighborhood or community. As with any new project or development in any neighborhood or community, there are always proponents and detractors. Indeed, under the American political system, opposing points of view are not only expected but encouraged. For example, the American criminal justice system involves an adversarial process that uses opposition in the search for the truth.

However, the NIMBY syndrome is triggered not by a criminal justice proceeding but from grassroots community activists who band together temporarily to oppose the installation of a project or development near where they live. The term NIMBY syndrome is usually not employed until the group opposing the proposed new project or development begins to seriously affect the chances of the proposed project or development's reaching reality. Opponents to such projects frequently take social, political, or legal [Page 261]action. Social steps may include seeking support from neighbors, circulating petitions, writing letters to the editor, or arranging protests. Political steps may include asking a local board to prohibit the proposed project or development, such as through zoning ordinances. Legal steps may include seeking a legal injunction from a court to stop the proposed project or development.

Some of the more common projects that have triggered the NIMBY syndrome include the installation of waste incinerators, landfills, airports, nuclear power plants, community mental health residences, and prisons. Each of these examples have in common the possibility (or perceived possibility) of affecting the quality of life in the neighborhood or community where the facility will be located. Waste incinerators, for example, can generate foul odors and pollute the air. Landfills have foul odors, can pollute groundwater, and are unsightly. Airports generate a large degree of traffic and noise produced by airplanes landing and taking off. Nuclear power plants present, however small, a risk of nuclear meltdown, which was highlighted in 1979 by the Three Mile Island incident in Pennsylvania (which largely contributed to the nationwide moratorium on construction of nuclear plants).

In the context of community corrections, community mental health residences, where people with psychiatric problems are placed to live, are frequently perceived as sources of social and crime problems in the area. Prisons raise the specter of escaped convicts terrorizing the neighborhood. In each of these examples, concerns over the proximity of these facilities contribute to the lowering of property values. Thus, NIMBY syndrome is arguably brought about by a local concern for both quality of life and property value.

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